BAPTIZED IN TRUJILLO'S DREAM, 2021

​Decorative molding, imitation gold leaf, family album photograph. 8' x 6'

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Baptized in Trujillo’s Dream laments the destructive 31-year regime of tyrant Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic, which deeply affected my grandfather through its heavily racist and consequently violent policies. As part of extensive colonial history, Trujillo’s tirade consisted of a white-centered aggrandizing of the country in social, cultural, economic, and moral spheres. People of color heavily internalized racialization, grandfather being no exception. The gold frame, made of interior molding and imitation gold leaf, embodies this aggrandization- and the family within is positioned to inherently fail fulfilling such expectations.