Afro-Cuban Religious Arts ― Popular Expressions of Cultural Inheritance in Espiritismo and Santeria

“Challenges the reader in provocative new ways. Points to the salient call to action presented by local Santeria and Espiritismo arts, ritual, performance, and other cultural forms in addressing core questions of history, legacy, and new beginnings.”—Suzanne Preston Blier, author of Royal Arts of Africa

“A much needed study of the manner in which the religious art of women is a fundamental dimension of Afro-Cuban religious ritual, both in the public and private spheres.”—Michelle Gonzalez Maldonado, author of Afro-Cuban Theology

This book profiles four generations of women from one Afro-Cuban religious family. From a plantation in Havana Province in the 1890s to a religious center in Spanish Harlem in the 1960s, these women were connected by their prominent roles as leaders in the religions they practiced and the dramatic ritual artwork they created. Each woman was a medium in Espiritismo—communicating with dead ancestors for guidance or insight—and also a santera, or priest of Santeria, who could intervene with the oricha pantheon.

Kristine Juncker argues that by creating art for more than one religion these women shatter the popular assumption that Afro-Caribbean religions are exclusive organizations. Most remarkably, the portraiture, sculptures, and photographs in Afro-Cuban Religious Arts offer rare glimpses into the rituals and iconography of these religions. Santeria altars are closely guarded, limited to initiates, and typically destroyed upon the death of the santera, while Espiritismo artifacts are rarely considered valuable enough to pass on. The unique and protean cultural legacy detailed here reveals insights into how ritual art became popular imagery, sparked a wider dialogue about culture inheritance, attracted new practitioners, and enabled the movement to explode internationally.