Water carries us. Milwaukee artist Ck Ledesma honors Yemayá — deity of the ocean — with a living outdoor altar rooted in Santería, diaspora, and devotion.
See the year-long outdoor sculpture installation by Milwaukee-based interdisciplinary artist Ck Ledesma. Drawing from the spiritual tradition of Santería, Ledesma builds an evolving altar dedicated to Yemayá, the Orisha of the oceans – bridging the Caribbean Sea and Lake Michigan as an act of devotion, cultural preservation and the ebb and flow of creation.
Curatorial Statement:
Ck Ledesma: If you put your ear to it, you can hear the waves
If you put your ear to it, you can hear the waves is a temporary outdoor sculpture installation by
Milwaukee-based interdisciplinary artist Ck Ledesma. Using clay, mirrors, tiles, and other materials, Ledesma reimagines an outdoor altar influenced by the spiritual tradition of Santería. Commonly practiced in home settings rather than temples, Santería is an African diasporic religion that blends Catholicism with West African spiritual traditions in the Caribbean, especially in Puerto Rico. The tradition was developed as a path for African-descended communities to maintain their beliefs and protect their culture under Spanish colonization which began in the early 16th century.
Ledesma’s altar is dedicated to Yemayá, the Orisha (or deity) of the ocean and the Mother of all things. Throughout the duration of the exhibition, the artist will continue to add and shape the altar, reflecting their devotion to cultural preservation, stewardship, and the creative ebb and flow of artmaking.
Although Wisconsin is not bordered by an ocean, the artist draws conceptual parallels between the Caribbean Sea and the vast, often turbulent nature of Lake Michigan. Both bodies of water hold deep histories and invite us to gather along their shores. They nourish us and remind us of our humanity in the face of nature’s immense power.
Because water has been one of the primary forces carrying people of the African diaspora to the Americas, and continues to shape the landscapes we occupy, Ledesma’s installation honors the long tradition of spiritual practices that honor the natural forces greater than ourselves. It also acknowledges that shores offer respite and reflection for the Bronzeville community and for Milwaukee as a whole.
About Ck Ledesma
Ck Ledesma Borrero is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and curator originally from
San Juan, Puerto Rico, now living and working in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for nearly two
decades. Their artwork is rooted in community engagement and social practice, using
performance, sculpture, and multimedia to create experiences that expand the
definition of art beyond the object and into the realm of dialogue and collective
meaning.
Read: Saltburn, a poem by Ck Ledesma