Ever since its emergence in colonial-era Cuba, Afro-Cuban Santeria (or Lucumi) has displayed a complex dynamic of continuity and change in its institutions, rituals, and iconography. Originally published in 2003 Santeria Enthroned combines art, history, cultural anthropology, and ethnohistory to show how Africans and their descendants have developed novel forms of religious practice in the face of relentless oppression. Focusing on the royal throne as a potent metaphor in Santeria belief and practice it shows how negotiations among ideologically competing interests have shaped the religion's...

Originally published in 2003, The Light Inside is a ground-breaking study of an Afro-Cuban secret society, its sacred arts, and their role in modern Cuban cultural history. Enslaved Africans and creoles developed the Abakua Society, a system of men's fraternal lodges, in urban Cuba beginnings in 1836. Drawing on years of fieldwork in the country, the book's novel approach builds on close readings of dazzling Abakua altars, chalk-drawn signs, and hooded masquerades. It looks at the art history of Abakua altars, not only tracing changing styles but also how they evolve through cycles of...