Replenishing (in 7 Parts)
In exploring identity, we have to interact with the familial and cultural histories that have influenced us today. The above piece is one image broken into 7 pieces. The two women portrayed are distinct yet similar. Given Campos-Pons curiosity of cross-generational identity, I believe that the two women are related to each other. Their connection is illustrated by the necklaces which they are grasping at either end. Here we have one woman who represents the past, and another who represents the present and/or future; two generations of one family. The woman on the right represents the past because she is dressed in a simple white gown with no shoes on and no adornments besides her ring. The lady on the left, however, does have jewelry and shoes on with a decorative dress; her attire resembles a more modern one. In addition, the necklaces that they hold between them represent the different orishas within Cuban Santeria that their ancestors probably practiced. The most important aspect of this piece is the emphasis placed on the connection and disconnect that they experience from each other; the product of a diaspora.
These Cuban women are not only disconnected from each other, they are also not in total connection with themselves and their bodies. The vertical divide into thirds distinguishes the mind (1) and the body (2) from their actions (3). These women are disconnected from each other, causing them to be disconnected from their own selves. Identity can be based on cultural experiences that generations of people have created and shared. However, the diaspora caused a disconnect between the cultures of African communities, and their descendents that were born in other lands. Particularly, she describes the disconnect between Black Cubans and their African ancestors. The necklace being the center of the disconnect is important because the orishas in Cuban Santeria came from the religious belief systems that African slaves carried within their cultural knowledge. As an artist who explores identity, Campos-Pons’ work depicts the complex connection she has with blackness as a child of the African diaspora.
However, these women can still be seen as being connected. They are holding onto the same necklace that holds their cultural similarities. The orishas in Santeria were mixed with Catholicism in order to survive. Thus, these images can also be seen as a piecing together of a puzzle that was once broken. Maria challenges our perception of blackness by perceiving it either as a disconnect with the past, a survival of the past, or both. You can see both angles of the story with these images. blackness is not simply a tale of pain, it is also a tale of living and reinvention. By creating this piece, Campos-Pons is living her blackness by being in contact with her past and associating it with her own life.