Three years of careful research into the history of colonialism led Jorge Luis to design this massive installation, which resembles a Spanish galleon. It was originally commissioned for the Mayfair Festival of the Arts to coincide with the 500th anniversary of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492. A statue of the Italian explorer can be seen at the apex of the nine-foot high structure, pointing ominously toward land. Below him, in the hold of the vessel, there are ceramic statuettes placed in rows to mimic the harsh conditions faced by the slaves aboard. They were each crafted individually by the artist, in contrast to the dehumanizing reality of slavery. The globe at the front of the ship alludes to the post-Columbian, “New World,” while the indigenous, Pre-Columbian inhabitants are represented by feathers placed all around the vessel. There are photographic etchings on the surface of each copper-plated continent, which are images taken from another sculpture, Mysteries of My Past, Present, and Future . While on display, the sounds of the ocean could also be heard playing in the background of the gallery space. Most impressi- ve, however, is the mechanical engineering of the ship’s wheel, which allows for rotation of the globe. It is this layering of different techniques and materials that evokes the consequences of Columbus’s fateful landing, and the resulting heterogeneity of the continent. Moreover, Jorge Luis is able to synthesize ele- ments of this shared, complicated history into a single structure, of which, he is both the architect and the passenger. After the Mayfair Festival, the installation was included in the exhibition “ Reclaiming Histo- ry,” which celebrated the 25th anniversary of El Museo del Barrio. It was then hosted at Kingsborough Community College later that year. Finally, in 1996, the installation made its way to Hartford, Connecti- cut. The exhibition, “Legacy/Legado,” was hosted at the Old New State House, which is also where the Amistad trials took place two centuries earlier.

Los tres años de investigacion cuidadosa sobre la historia del colonialismo llevaron a Jorge Luis a disenar esta enorme instalacion que se parece a un galeon espanol. Fue comisionada originalmente por el Mayfield Festival of the Arts para coincidir con el aniversario 500mo de la llegada de Cristobal Colon en 1492. Una estatua del explorador italiano se puede ver en el apice de la estructura de nueve pies de alto, apuntando ominosamente hacia tierra firme. Debajo de el, en la bodega de la embarcacion, hay unas estatuillas de ceramica organizadas en filas que imitan las duras condiciones de los esclavos que iban a bordo. Cada una fue hecha individualmente por el artista, lo que contrasta con la realidad deshumanizadora de la esclavitud. El globo frente al barco hace referencia al „Nuevo Mundo“ pos – colombino, mientras que los habitantes indigenas precolombinos son representados por plumas colocadas a lo largo del barco. Hay grabados fotograficos en la superficie de cada continente revestido de cobre, que son imagenes tomadas de otra escultura, Mysteries of My Past, Present and Future. Durante su exposicion, se podian oir sonidos del oceano en el fondo de la galeria. Sin embargo, lo mas impresionante era la ingenieria mecanica del timon del barco, que permitia hacer girar al globo. Esta superimposicion de tecnicas y materiales evoca las consecuencias del desembarque fatidico de Colon y la resultante heterogeneidad del continente. Ademas, Jorge Luis sintetiza elementos de esta historia compartida en una sola estructura de la cual el es tanto el arquitecto como el pasajero. Despues del Mayfair Festival, la instalacion fue incluida en la exposicion „Reclaiming History“, que celebro el aniversario numero 25 del Museo del Barrio. Mas tarde en ese ano fue exhibida en el Kingsborough Community College. Finalmente, en 1996, la instalacion llego a Hartford, Connecticut. La exhibicion, „Legacy/Legado“, fue organizada en Old New State House, que fue donde los juicios de La Amistad tuvieron lugar dos siglos antes.