Cielo Félix-Hernández

Cielo Félix-Hernández is a trans and Latino artist of Puerto Rican origin based in the United States. Their work visualizes and reclaims decolonial ways of interpreting identity (national, racial, and sexual) and self-narratives. Their paintings, usually made with natural pigments, respond to past and present colonization in the Caribbean islands and the effects the mass migration of people of Caribbean origin to the United States has on the psyche—to the point of disrupting self-care practices. In their works, Félix-Hernández regularly portrays theirselves nude to reflect on the way women (cis and trans) are defined and constrained by their bodies, abilities, beauty, age, and society’s expectations of normality. Color plays a central role in Félix-Hernández’s painting: the bright color palette is inspired by memories of their childhood in Puerto Rico. Félix-Hernández expresses the essence of their trans-Boricua identity through bright, exuberant colors, huge bananas, and extravagant manicures.