Between the Leopard and the Jaguar

"Between the Leopard and the Jaguar" affirms the resilience of indigenous communities since the Conquest. Cervantes portrays a contemporary "danzante," a dancer associated with indigenous ceremonies, who performed at an Occupy San Francisco event in 2011 against income inequality in the United States. The background patterns recall Aztec motifs from ancient to colonial eras. The gold form represents an "ocelotl cuauhxicalli," a sacred vessel in the shape of a jaguar used for sacrificial offerings. The symmetrical grid pattern references "patolli," an ancient Aztec game of chance outlawed by the Spanish.