La abuela de la madre de la hija (Yemoja)

Daniel Lind-Ramos is known for creating works rooted in Afro-Caribbean culture. This painting depicts a topless Black woman carrying an image of Our Lady of Regla on her belly. The composition is reminiscent of altarpieces depicting the Virgin enthroned, although she appears to be resting on a seashell. In keeping with the syncretic tradition of the Afro-Cuban religion of Yoruba origin known as Santería or Lucumí, the Virgin of Regla is associated with Yemayá, the orisha or deity of the seas, motherhood (birth and rebirth), and love. She is often depicted alongside two moons. In this painting, the artist pays homage to his maternal lineage, highlighting the idea of matrilineal spiritual transmission as sustenance and cultural continuity. Ancestral strength, wisdom, memory, and imagination are the keys learned in the forced mourning of our island lineage founded on the uprooting of a population brought here against their will during the slave trade.