MY RESEARCH
Since graduating from the University of Havana in 2014, my academic journey has been dedicated to exploring Caribbean, and Afro-Hispanic studies, specifically focusing on literature, music, and race. In my undergraduate thesis, titled Nicolás Guillén: Más motivos para son, I delved into the musicalization of the renowned Afro-Cuban writer's poems during the early 20th-century Cuban musical nationalist movement. Employing a linguistic and ethnomusicological approach, my research also aimed to uncover the influence of the African diaspora and the presence of the musical genre of son in Guillén's works.
Throughout my academic career, my research interests have led me to engage with emerging fields such as African Diaspora and Afro-Latinx Studies, digital humanities, and public policies. My passion for the visual arts was ignited during my time at Vanderbilt. One significant experience that shaped my involvement in this realm was my role as Assistant Editor at Afro-Hispanic Review. During this time, I worked closely with guest editor Dr. Juanamaría Cordones-Cook to prepare a special issue on Afro-Cuban art. This involved publishing three testimonies and dossiers based on interviews with esteemed Afro-Cuban artists Manuel Mendive, Santiago Rodríguez Olazábal, and Eduardo Roca Salazar "Choco."
My dissertation, El arte femenino: Interpretando los códigos de la Sociedad Abakuá, examines the cultural artifacts created by artists, such as Belkis Ayón, Sara Gómez, Ana Mendieta, and Guillermo Cabreara Infante, who draw from the imagery of the Abakuá Society. Historically, scholars have interpreted the Abakuá through racial, gendered, religious, ideological, and moral frameworks, often depicting it as phallocentric, misogynistic, and possessing underdeveloped religious and ethical practices. However, my research shifts the focus to the influence of the Abakuá imaginary on Cuban culture through an artistic lens. I argue that the myths, rituals, symbols, ethos, and constructions of gender and race within the Abakuá have permeated Cuban cultural production, offering artists a counter-hegemonic platform to challenge discourses of male and political dominance. My work highlights how these artists affirm African ancestry and engage with mythological realms to construct diasporic identities that navigate the tensions between an African past and a Caribbean present. Through this perspective, my research reveals the complex cultural exchanges between Africa, the Caribbean, and the United States, providing a deeper understanding of diasporic identity formation and artistic resistance.