Notes from "La Isla Bonita​"

by Juan Pablo Huizi Clavier


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​1. Coqui and the Legend of the Princess of the Wind (Matanzas, Cuba, 1990). Coqui is a semi-mythical figure from contemporary Cuban oral folklore, supposedly originating in Matanzas. Her popularity is said to have grown from post-1990 storytelling during the so-called Special Period, when people decided reality was so harsh that it was better to add a little magic to balance things out. Coqui is described as a young woman with microscopic Caribbean islands in her fingerprints; in the myth, an unpredictable climate—produced by her emotional states—responds to her moods.


2. Archi-piel-agos: a Spanish pun on archipiélagos (“archipelagos”) and piel (“skin”).


3. Batá: A set of three double-headed, hourglass-shaped drums of different sizes,
fundamental to the sacred music of the Afro-Cuban religion Santería. Their rhythms are used to invoke and communicate with the Orishas (deities). In a secular context, their powerful, complex beats are also a quintessential sound of Cuban musical heritage.


​Juan Pablo Huizi Clavier is an interdisciplinary artist and writer.

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​​​​​​​​​SHARE - Issue: 2.1 / October 2026