Afro-Taino artist Martha De la Cruz’s piece Techo de Sin (Roof of Without) is her reflection on the poverty-stricken lives of South American migrants in the USA. The piece is an installation of a house typically occupied by poor immigrants, with a zinc roof built directly on dirt without walls. The structure was made up of stolen and donated materials from the homes of South American migrants in Southwest Florida, an area with a particularly large population of South American migrants who live below the poverty line.
By recreating the house of an impoverished South American immigrant, De la Cruz invites her audiences to discuss houselessness, government corruption and income disparity that the community is subjected to in the United States. This makes her piece relevant to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Reduced Inequalities and No Poverty.
In an interview with Gulfshore Life, De la Cruz shared that her art-making process is usually not straightforward. “I tend to begin with a problem that interests me and then let my curiosity lead me to places that may or may not be useful in understanding that problem,” said De la Cruz. However, Techo de Sin (Roof of Without) is also a particularly personal piece for her as she herself had moved to Southwest Florida from the Dominican Republic when she was 18.
The “problem” that had interested her is easy to observe in Southwest Florida. The American Immigration Council (AIC) found that one in five residents in the state was born in another country and Florida is home to a higher than national average percentage of the population who are living below the poverty line.
The AIC has also found that one in four workers in Florida are immigrants, making them a vital part of the state’s labour force in a wide range of industries. An in-depth 2021 PBS report found that wage theft is especially prevalent among immigrant workers. It outlined that workers were often cheated out of minimum wage, as employees could exploit legal loopholes due to their citizenship statuses. This meant that immigrant workers received only around $5 an hour, a reality which remains the key driving force behind immigrants living below the poverty line.
This is the reality that Martha De la Cruz’s Techo de Sin (Roof of Without) aims to highlight. By transforming the typical house of a poor South American into an art piece, she can share their plight with her audiences. Techo de Sin (Roof of Without) helps exploited and poor immigrants share their stories and be heard, with the hope of a future free from economic inequalities and exploitation.
Learn more about Martha de la Cruz’s Techo de Sin and their other pieces by checking their Instagram on @tainofury.