Retablo for Body and Mind
The Retablo for Body and Mind challenges traditional gender roles in the context of spirituality and the threat of climate change.
Initially conceived as a piece to honor the victims of the 2004 tsunami, it soon grew to include any and all lives lost to natural or human made tragedies.
In Catholic iconography a retablo is the representational art piece located behind the altar that generally illustrates the relationship between a particular saint and the Savior.
In this piece, the traditional saints occupying the retablo are not seen in divine contemplation but struggling to connect and escape some impending doom.
From a queer interest point of view, the retablo illustrates the restricted ability of traditional male and female binary roles to respond to current challenges; it explores dynamic social interactions that acknowledge and embrace diverse individual abilities and an enlarged range of human behavior.
