Shortcuts #10
Takeover by Melanie Gonzales
We'd like to welcome you to ‘Shortcuts,' our end-of-month 6-question interview on our Substack platform, followed by a six-day daily takeover of our Instagram account by the featured artists and galleries. Please take a moment to click here to subscribe to our Instagram if you haven't already. Now, without further ado, please welcome artist Melanie Gonzales.
The contours of an island, like a noose, tighten the curves of a woman. The woman, who knew nothing else than this land surrounded by the Atlantic waters, is muted by the iron hands that turned this paradise into a prison. Yet, she finds her voice amid strict bans, with a paper and a pen, and by reading poetry from her country, the South American continent and beyond. Despite the burden of self-censorship, she turns poems into photographs, speaking metaphorically about the black and white of her daily existence on this turbulent land. The island is Cuba, and the multimedia artist and woman is Melanie Gonzales.
We meet Gonzales on her first trip outside of Cuba, at an art residency in Portugal. When we first encounter her, she sits at a table, fidgeting, ready to burst with the energy of newfound freedom. The residency lasts four weeks, bringing together South American artists to create work in celebration of 50 years since the Portuguese revolution, a revolution that brought freedom to her host country. In this brief time, she doesn’t rest. She explores, absorbs, and creates. At Caritas, she takes Portuguese lessons offered to migrants, and within days, she translates her poems into this new language. She transforms these words into photographs, still working in the ways of her old land. Her creations reflect the struggles of her people, woven into every image and line.
We find her on the crossroad, on the brink of new possibilities. Traveling with a single suitcase, burdened by the stories of the island. With her voice not muted anymore, we hope that with each new step, she sheds the old skin and discovers peace, joy and fresh inspiration.
What conversations do you hope your work will inspire?
My primary intention is to create spaces for dialogue through my work, inviting people to immerse themselves in the universe I have built to explore the darker corners of thought. My photography seeks to delve into the intrinsic nature of the human being. The combination of words and images serves as an invitation to the emotional realm, encouraging people to reflect on the political, social, and human aspects of life, but from a deeply sensory perspective.
Could you describe your creative process? Tell us about one of your projects.
My creative process begins with introspection; most of the time, my works are born from pain, from something I need to exorcise. First, I identify the emotion, then sketch it out in words until a poem is born, and finally, I transform it into an image.
Las uvas sin vid
son lo que un perro extranjero
en las tierras de Dios..
Las hormigas devoran
más que panes y cadáveres.
Destruyen los cimientos del embrión.
Un feto sin útero
gobernó la tierra despoblada
el año en que me dio a luz mi madre.
La obligaron a gestar un cuerpo
para que mis ojos fueran el pañuelo
donde secara su sudor el mundo.
- Melanie Gonzales
What is your studio or workspace like (physical or mental)?
In Cuba, having a photography studio is very challenging, so I usually make use of any neutral space with good lighting. Most of the time, I rely on natural light since I don’t have lighting equipment. The majority of my work takes shape in my mind. While reading poetry, I begin to create images. At other times, the need to convey my country’s political situation pushes me to create visual metaphors. While living in Cuba, I couldn’t be too explicit in my discourse due to censorship.
Is your art influenced by the place where you were born or where you currently live?
My art will always be a vivid reflection of my roots. In every poem, in every photograph, my country, its people, their struggles, and their tears are ever-present. My work is a protest, a cry; it’s the poetry of what has been discarded.
Who are some of the women who most inspire and influence you?
The women who inspire me most are, first and foremost, my mother, who has always encouraged me to be the best version of myself; my friends, amazing women like Gretel Marín, Ika García, Jaichel Morales, and Ela Leyva—all independent, intelligent, and resilient—true examples of Cuban women. Then there are the poets: Alejandra Pizarnik, Alfonsina Storni, Dulce María Loynaz, and Lina de Feria, women who have turned their lives into the most sublime verses. Lastly, and just as important, myself. My greatest inspiration is to envision myself at 35 years old and imagine where I can be by then.
What excites, worries, or keeps you connected, either personally or professionally?
My greatest motivation and concern is the future—so uncertain and volatile. At this point in my life, I don’t know where I’ll be tomorrow, but I know I’ve taken the first step, and whatever comes, I’ll embrace it as an exciting challenge.
For further information about Melanie Gonzales, please visit her Insta pages, but first, spend the next week with Melanie by following her takeover of our Instagram page!