Artwork by Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez and Imna Arroyo
Artist
Imna Arroyo
Artist
Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez
(Puerto Rican)
Date1997
Mediumpositive color slides
ClassificationsGraphics
Credit LineConnecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program collections
CopyrightIn Copyright
Object number2015.196.631.1-.17
DescriptionPhotographs of artwork displayed in the exhibition, "Herencia Taina: Legacy and Life," at the Institute for Community Research in 1997.
2015.196.631.1-.15 are photographs of works made by Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez.
2015.196.631.16-.17 are photographs of works made by Imna Arroyo.
(.1) “Eva Rana-Sencilla" - Carved higüera gourd. This design of a goddess is one of the artist's favorites. The unusual border departs from Taino motifs as the artist combines other styles.
(.2) “Simbolo Taíno” - Carved higüera gourd. The symbols are taken from rubbings of petroglyphs in Yabucoa discovered in 1996.
(.3) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño” - Details of soundbox carvings. Higüera carved with steel tips. Textured with both fine and wide grooves. Decorated with iconography of Puerto Rican cultural influences.
(.4) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño” - Detail of headpiece and crest.
(.5) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño” - Details of soundbox carvings.
(.6) “Atabey Reina” - The figure of Atabey, with dancing figures around the sides giving a sense of movement.
(.7-.8) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño”
(.9) “Eva Rana” - Carved higuera
(.10) A bordonua, Puerto Rican stringed instrument.
(.11-.13) Tiples, Puerto Rican stringed instruments.
(.14) “Criatura Taína” - This design uses a central symbol which suggests a baby, while on the sides are playful motifs possibly representing fertilized eggs.
(.15) “Divinidad Feminina” - A depiction of a fertility goddess, with one interpretation of the geometric border designs being the division of cells of a fertilized egg. The artist feels that such geometric designs are charged with energy.
(.16) "Ancestral Call: Abuela Criolla" - oil on canvas painting. One of two portraits of the artist's grandmother. This painting reflects the Spanish and Indian roots of her maternal grandmother.
(.17) “Abuela Negra" painting - One of two portraits of the artist's grandmother. The artist's paternal grandmother with African roots.
NotesSubject Note: "Herencia Taina: Legacy and Life" was an exhibit and related programs examining the history of Puerto Rico's indigenous people, the Taino through contemporary art expressions and interpretations, on view May 3-November 30, 1997 at the Institute for Community Research.2015.196.631.1-.15 are photographs of works made by Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez.
2015.196.631.16-.17 are photographs of works made by Imna Arroyo.
(.1) “Eva Rana-Sencilla" - Carved higüera gourd. This design of a goddess is one of the artist's favorites. The unusual border departs from Taino motifs as the artist combines other styles.
(.2) “Simbolo Taíno” - Carved higüera gourd. The symbols are taken from rubbings of petroglyphs in Yabucoa discovered in 1996.
(.3) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño” - Details of soundbox carvings. Higüera carved with steel tips. Textured with both fine and wide grooves. Decorated with iconography of Puerto Rican cultural influences.
(.4) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño” - Detail of headpiece and crest.
(.5) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño” - Details of soundbox carvings.
(.6) “Atabey Reina” - The figure of Atabey, with dancing figures around the sides giving a sense of movement.
(.7-.8) “Cuatro Puertorriqueño”
(.9) “Eva Rana” - Carved higuera
(.10) A bordonua, Puerto Rican stringed instrument.
(.11-.13) Tiples, Puerto Rican stringed instruments.
(.14) “Criatura Taína” - This design uses a central symbol which suggests a baby, while on the sides are playful motifs possibly representing fertilized eggs.
(.15) “Divinidad Feminina” - A depiction of a fertility goddess, with one interpretation of the geometric border designs being the division of cells of a fertilized egg. The artist feels that such geometric designs are charged with energy.
(.16) "Ancestral Call: Abuela Criolla" - oil on canvas painting. One of two portraits of the artist's grandmother. This painting reflects the Spanish and Indian roots of her maternal grandmother.
(.17) “Abuela Negra" painting - One of two portraits of the artist's grandmother. The artist's paternal grandmother with African roots.
ICR's Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program, in conjunction with project scholar Ruth Glasser and designer Ricardo Mulero, planned an exhibit, workshops, and concert to present a wide range of arts practiced by musicians and visual artists who are inspired by Taino heritage. Participating artists included Imna Arroyo (Eastern Connecticut State University), Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez (West Hartford), Mel Gonzalez (Meriden), and Roberto Borrero (New York), who created contemporary interpretations and folk art works illustrating Taino heritage, such as musical instruments, gourd carvings, paintings, and textile art, as well as interpretive information for these. Their works were juxtaposed with Taino artifacts from archaeological collections, along with photographs and posters from the continuing indigenous festival held in Jayuya, Puerto Rico, to show the strong influence that Taino culture still holds for Puerto Ricans. The exhibit project also presented several public events including a concert, a workshop for teachers, and a roundtable discussion. An illustrated brochure in both English and Spanish was produced. The project was supported by the Connecticut Humanities Council, the Connecticut Commission on the Arts, the Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts Foundation, the Greater Hartford Arts Council, and the Institute for Community Research.
The heritage of the Taino Indians is often proudly proclaimed by Puerto Ricans as one of the three strands of their multi-racial society. What that heritage consists of, how much of it has survived, and its relative importance in the overall culture of the island has been a hotly debated topic for centuries. The Tainos, indigenous people living in Puerto Rico when colonists arrived in the late 15th century, provide an example of the politics and complexities of interpreting a culture which has only a small present-day community and no living language, but is both remembered from the recent past and still represented in blood lines, place names, some everyday practices, and spiritual and political inspiration.
Recreated musical instruments made by members of the group Cacibajagua showed how contemporary Puerto Ricans have been both adopting Taino heritage and basing their work on serious study of archaeology and indigenous materials. Cacibajagua demonstrated their music at a concert on May 1, 1997, at Charter Oak Cultural Center in Hartford.
Biographical Note: Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez is a Puerto Rican educator, social worker, artist, and luthier who apprenticed with William Cumpiano (Easthampton, MA) and has built cuatros, tiples, and bordonuas. Graciela is also a cuatrista and higüera (gourd) and santos carver. She served as an advisory committee and exhibiting artist and workshop leader for CCHAP’s three Puerto Rican projects, starting as a community scholar with Herencia Taina, CCHAP’s 1998 Taino exhibit project, researching the techniques of higüera preparation and decoration for use as household utensils, ornaments with Taino or political iconography, or musical instruments. She also worked as an artist-presenter for the Massachusetts Cultural Council summer institute on Puerto Rican cultural heritage for Springfield, Massachusetts teachers. Graciela is a highly respected arts educator, woodcarver, and singer with the Connecticut Latin music group Tierra Mestiza. She is a Connecticut Commission on the Arts Master Teaching Artist and Artists Fellowship winner. As part of the Southern New England Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program, she worked with master luthier Bill Cumpiano. Together they built cuatros, tiples, and bordonuas, older forms of Puerto Rican stringed instruments. As part of the apprenticeship they built a cuatro on the basis of a photograph of an unusual form from the early 1900's, which has a bent wood body rather than a hollowed-out base. They demonstrated their partnership work at the Lowell Folk Festival in 2000.
Biographical Note: Imna Arroyo is an artist and was the long-time Professor of Art at Eastern Connecticut State University until her retirement. She was also the advisor of the Printmaking Club there since 1994 and Chair of the Visual Art Department. Imna has exhibited her paintings, prints, silk screens, sculptures, and other art creations nationally and internationally, winning many accolades. Her work explores themes of identity, Black diaspora cultures, Puerto Rican history and contemporary issues, and women’s experiences. She has written about her work in publications and is featured in many prestigious museum, gallery and private collections. She founded the Windham Art Center and Gallery and is active in community arts initiatives such as Collectivo Mestizal, a Latin American and Caribbean group whose mission is to promote Latino arts, education and culture in the region.
Additional materials exist in the CCHAP archve for these artists and this event.
Cataloging Note: This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services MA-245929-OMS-20.
Status
Not on view
Graciela Quiñones-Rodriguez
2004 February 21