Anais Roman
Anais Roman
Tierra / Land
Due to the ongoing electricity and gentrification crisis in Puerto Rico, residents continue protesting, carrying signs that read: ‘Nuestra Tierra No Se Vende / Our Land Is Not Up For Sale.’ Puerto Rico is unincorporated territory of the United States. Puerto Ricans are US citizens. Yet the existential struggles Puerto Ricans face daily are not compelling enough news for mainstream media on the mainland. It’s not surprising that Puerto Rican natives feel like second class citizens. But Puerto Ricans are a proud people. Artists — painters, composers, filmmakers — are depicting their people’s hardships and triumphs, and exhibiting their work all over the continent. As a Puerto Rican American designer, I am interested in exploring visual language that raises awareness of the plight of Puerto Rican natives; communicates the impact of gentrification and its role in perpetuating the diaspora. Tierra / Land is a gesture of solidarity. A series of physical and digital components are designed as embodiments of the Puerto Rican experience. Design can instigate change.
Contact:
Typographic sculpture constructed with 96 layers of plexiglass.
Blackout
Lights flicker and go out
Noisy AC’s are suddenly silent
A neighbor's generator roars to life
While we sit and wait for power.
Five years after the hurricane
Power grid still not restored
Protests rage in the darkness
Still nothing seems to change.
Americans treated like second-class citizens
Neglected by the mainland,
by presidents
People who will never be silenced
Fighting for justice and light.
Home Away From Home
Between California and Western
A straight shot down Division
Two flags protect a small community
From displacement and resentment.
Salsa musicians play to the rhythm of thunder
Murals depict lush green mountains
Dancers flow like the waves in the Caribbean Sea
Boricuas stand together hand in hand.
Far from their homeland
They have created a new pueblo
Family and friends share a singular experience
Home away from home.
San Juan / Chicago poster
Each letter in the words San Juan are formed by
repeated letterforms from the word Chicago.
