South Body
Carlos Martiel (Cuba)
Description
Vancouver Biennale Billboard Project
South Body by Carlos Martiel
5th Biennial of the Americas, Denver, Colorado, United States
Curated by Marisa Caichiolo, this international festival took place from September 25 to 28, 2019.
A naked body lies on the floor in a fetal position but in a state of repose reminiscent of a 19th-century academic drawing. A violent detail interrupts this serene scene: a small American flag pinned to the subject’s shoulder. While the gesture is almost visually insignificant, it represents a potent wound in Carlos Martiel’s body. What previously seemed a peaceful image is transformed into a desolate panorama: a body that has surrendered to the domination of the colonial wound.
This artwork is the second instalment (2026) of the Vancouver Biennale Billboard Project, following Carlos Martiel’s Gran Poder that was installed in 2025. It is commissioned in conjunction with the publication of Carlos Martiel: Great Nation, co-published by Temblores Publicaciones and the Vancouver Biennale.
Edited by Vania Macias Osorno and Ana Gabriela García. Introduction by Keyna Eleison. Text by Eduardo Carrera and Jill Lane. Interview by Jorge Sánchez. Translated by Kimberly Kruge and Odina Skartados.
This publication brings together essays and a conversation that, alongside visual documentation of more than 40 works, activate urgent debates on race, migration, and borders.
Photo: Jordan Spencer
