Studebaker, Plátanos y Machete (2018) is a sculpture commissioned by the Museo de Arte y Diseño de Miramar (MADMi), in Puerto Rico. The sculpture is based on a 1949 Studebaker pickup that belonged to the original owner of the house where the museum was built. The Studebaker brand was known for its futuristic stylings, as illustrated in its rocketship-like hood ornament. Here, the truck is re-imagined as a toy-like fantasy of American modernity from the 1950s. In the bed of the truck is a single bunch of plantains, cast from the first harvests of local farms that were devastated after Hurricane Maria. Next to the plantains lays a single red machete. Together, the Studebaker, plátanos and machete reference Puerto Rico's symbolic past and present, connecting the island and diaspora through symbols of land, labor, migration and resistance.
 

Studebaker, Platanos, Machete
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Museo de Arte y Diseño de Miramar (MADMi)
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete, 2018.
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Museo de Arte y Diseño de Miramar (MADMi)
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete photo: Yiyo Tirado
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete, 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
photo: Yiyo Tirado
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete photo: Yiyo Tirado
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete, 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
photo: Yiyo Tirado
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete, 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete (detail), 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete (detail), 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete (detail), 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete, 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete (detail), 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Miguel Luciano Studebaker, Platanos, Machete Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin
Studebaker, Platanos y Machete (detail), 2018
Fiberglass, steel, polyester urethane resin