Tuki

Pitch: In this project I want to show the blending of different cultures that led to the creation of this new culture that we live in.

I want to take concepts from the history of both Senegal and Puerto Rico since they both have a similar background of European powers fighting for their control and colonization of the lands looking for wealth and more power. Even though the history is very dark, this is not what I want to stand out most. I want to show how even from such dark origins and how the history of our country, as we know it, now is because of what happened and the mix of different cultures blending together leading to the creation of the beautiful place and culture we now know it as. We still embrace the colonial architecture and the history it brings along with it by teaching it to future generations and continue to hold on to them as landmarks (they can’t be torn down) and continue living in them and taking care of them by repainting them with bright colors and repairing any damages. The streets of colonial areas in Puerto Rico are named landmarks where the cobblestone streets, buildings, statues, forts, churches, or convents etc. can’t be touched. Today we still hold resentment towards Spain and the United States because of what they did to us and how they looked at and treated us, but I see differently. Without them we would not be who we are today and what makes a Puerto Rican. I feel like the mix of Spanish, African and Taino (natives) cultures blended in a way where we can still trace back its origins but made it our own identity as well.

Why Senegal? For this project we had an invited guest to work with, Badara, where he spoke to us about his life and how he had to move from Senegal to the United States where he wanted to practice sports. He later on found his passion for art through photography, modeling, fashion and has been able to collaborate with other artists internationally. Our starting point for this project was the concept of “Tukki” which means displacement. What made Badara how he is today, is embracing his life’s trajectory and all the changes he had to go through as well as all the cultural changes and challenges he experienced in each new place. With this in mind, I related a lot to it as I had moved across the globe just like him to expand my education and opportunities.

During his presentation when he was showing pictures of Senegal I couldn’t stop thinking about how similar it is architecturally to many towns in Puerto Rico. While you’re scrolling through my sketchbook (pictured above) you will see images from Senegal and then Puerto Rico (Old San Juan and Ponce specifically). I was inspired by the similarities in color choice, bold bright colors contrasted with more colored doors and windows. One would think these pictures are from the same location. I moved on with the colors and shapes on my mind and painted an abstract mapping of these buildings mixing both places together with no sense of direction. Those paintings were later on adapted into repeat patterns and then focusing on a particular point for a “zoomed-in” expanded pattern used in the final garment.

Textile experimentations: I worked with machine and hand embroidery, fabric painting and natural fabric dying where avocado skins gave me orange and aloe leafs gave me purple. For the garments I leaned more towards a focus on shape which is why I decided to only use fabric painting for final result.