Ajiaco: Stirrings of the Cuban Soul

In 1939 Fernando Ortiz first characterized Cuban culture as ajiaco: a rich stew consisting of a large variety of ingredients cooked until a thick broth is formed. It is this synthesis which is the essence of Cuban art. It embraces and visualizes the very nature of the Cuban soul and reveals the profundity of its expression. This is the subject of Ajiaco: Stirrings of the Cuban Soul, an exhibition organized by the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London, Connecticut. The art in this unique and timely exhibition, and its accompanying bilingual catalog, incorporates the tales of the Orisha of Africa, the calligraphy of the Tao Te Ching, and the rituals of indigenous peoples. The formats change, the materials vary, but the syncretist mix remains constant in Cuban and Cuban American art.