Exhibition Curated by Mariana Ramos Ortiz

We are thrilled to announce the upcoming exhibition titled “I Saw the Future, It’s So Wonderful, There Are Puerto Ricans,” which will take place from July 1st until July 31, 2023, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This extraordinary exhibition curated by Puerto Rican artists, Mariana Ramos Ortiz brings together a diverse group of Puerto Rican artists who employ imaginative politics to explore the challenges, hopes, and dreams of Puerto Rico.

In Puerto Rico, a multitude of microcosms converge and diverge, each with its own unique sense of time, operational logic, and understanding of freedom, shaping the way we assimilate the challenges of the present. However, these worlds are bound together by a shared terrain marked by dispossession, neoliberal policies, and utopian futures handed to others on a silver platter as part of the American colonial project.

The exhibition’s title, “I Saw the Future, It’s So Wonderful, There Are Puerto Ricans,” is a powerful message that originated from Edwin Miranda, an adviser to ousted governor Ricardo Roselló, during the 2019 Telegramgate scandal. Originally intended to exclude Puerto Ricans and read as follows “I saw the future, it’s so wonderful, there are no Puerto Ricans”, the wordplay employed by Ramos in this offensive statement serves to contextualize conversations surrounding Puerto Rican futurity. This exhibition aims to challenge such power imbalances and reclaim spaces of power through speculative fictions, imaginative capacities, and the constant reinterpretation of the past, present, and future.

“I Saw the Future, It’s So Wonderful, There Are Puerto Ricans” showcases Puerto Rican artists who utilize imaginative politics to navigate Puerto Rico’s complex history and envision a liberated future. Rejecting the colonial traditions of dominant speculative practices, these artists prioritize the present and formulate strategies grounded in the now. They view the past, present, and future as interdependent temporalities that converge, interrupt, and impact each other, offering new forms of knowledge and vocabularies that shape possible futures.

The exhibition will feature a diverse range of artworks, including:

• “La Futura” by María José: A speech given by transdisciplinary artist and activist María José, who challenges modernist and nationalist conceptions of gender, race, class, and progress, proposing a future that recognizes and challenges the present work being done to secure our visions of the future.
• “Isla Flotante” by Jezabeth González Roca: A video installation that explores the concept of Puerto Rico as a floating entity, inviting the audience to imagine the possibilities of living on a floating island and intertwining personal and collective narratives.
• “Hoyo en Uno” by Amanda Torres: A video-performance where Torres embodies the role of a golf player attempting to hit golf balls into the asphalt potholes of abandoned roads, critiquing the transformation of Puerto Rico into a consumable tourist destination.
• Works by José Luis Vargas: Through a combination of spirituality, fantasy, science fiction, and myths, Vargas reinvents Puerto Rico’s past, present, and future, subverting dominant narratives and emphasizing the power of remembering.
• “Echoes of a Tumbling Throne (Odas al fin de los tiempos) Livel 8: COOERPOH A COOERPOH” by Sofía Córdova: Córdova’s narrative-driven installation, video, music, and performance explore the impact of speculative developments on immortality, exploitation, gender, race, and class, questioning possible futures.
• “Untitled” by Miranda Beltrán: Photographs

Events related to this Exhibition:

• 3D Virtual Guided Tour with exhibition curator Mariana Ramos Ortiz
  • Saturday, July 8, 2023, 11:00 am
  • In conjunction with I saw the future, it’s so wonderful, there are Puerto Ricans

• Performance by MaríaJosé
  • Saturday, July 29, 2023, 2:00 pm
  • In conjunction with I saw the future, it’s so wonderful, there are Puerto Ricans

References:

• “Vi el futuro, es maravilloso, hay Puertorriqueñxs / I saw the future, it’s so wonderful, there are Puerto Ricans.” apexart, 2023. https://apexart.org/ortiz.php#events
• Ramos Ortiz, Mariana. “I Saw the Future, It’s so Wonderful, There Are Puerto Ricans.” apexart, 2023. https://apexart.org/I-Saw-essay-ENG.php#secondPage.
• “I SAW THE FUTURE, IT’S SO WONDERFUL, THERE ARE PUERTO RICANS ONLINE 3D CURATORIAL TOUR.” apexart, 2023. https://apexart.org/ortiztour.php
• “MARÍAJOSÉ PERFORMANCE.” apexart, 2023. https://apexart.org/ortizperform2.php