«Ay Bendito!» is a group exhibition featuring works by ten artists from Puerto Rico. The exhibition forges a link between Puerto Rico and the Canary Islands through contemporary art, exploring themes such as identity, memory, territory, architecture, nature, tradition and social change. It is on display at the Leyendecker in Santa Cruz.
The exhibition is conceived as an artistic dialogue between Puerto Rico and the Canary Islands. Its starting point is a historical connection stretching back centuries: Canarian emigration to Puerto Rico shaped communities there and left its mark on traditions, language, ways of life and identity. Against this backdrop, the Atlantic Ocean appears here not only as a boundary, but also as a bridge between two archipelagos sharing a common memory.
The participating artists are Ángel Otero, Edra Soto, Natalia Sánchez, Rogelio Báez, Yiyo Tirado, Karlo Andrei Ibarra, José Lerma, Jorge Jiménez, Jun Martínez and Livia Ortiz. Their works showcase various perspectives within contemporary art from Puerto Rico.
Theme-wise, the works revolve around identity, memory, landscape and the built environment, nature, traditional forms and social change. A variety of expressive forms are employed, ranging from painting and sculpture to installation and experiments with materials.
