With the internet being so easy to access, it has become easier for independent artists to find an audience and let their work be known. As a result, a variety of movements, collectives, and scenes have found a way to pave their way. The independent art scene in Puerto Rico is no different. Recently, a variety of artists from a variety of disciplines have found platforms that have made it easier for them to share their work. In addition, small businesses such as Electroshock in Santurce and Rio Piedras, bars like Off The Wall in Mayaguez, and libraries like La Casita Books and Gifts in Aguadilla have provided up-and-coming artists a space for them to display their talents. “Puerto Rican Women Killing It in the Independent Art Scene” are interviews which provide a glimpse at a few of the women who are making their way in said movement. Though the artists were asked similar questions, some were asked queries focused specifically on their work.
Celia Margarita Ayala Lugo is a west-coast based poet and author of two self-published anthologies entitled Diario de un Labial Atrofiado and Ramos de Vidrio. I have had the pleasure of collaborating with her in a variety of ways, mainly through poetry and via open mics held by Vox Populi: Puerto Rico. The following interview was conducted online.
How did you get into writing, especially poetry?
I began writing in January 2012, when I started college at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico at San Germán, participating in Poetry Slams; at first, it was highly intimidating to compete against a dozen great writers on campus, but it was their support and encouragement which motivated me to continue writing and achieving different life goals. Ever since then, poetry came into my life to stay.
(cover of Ramos de Vidrio by Taymara Sanchez)
I’ve seen your work is highly influenced by identity, beauty, and your passion for the arts, how did this happen?
Most of my poems are based on life experiences; it is the little details in life which made me find solace in writing. When I was in middle school, I was highly mocked for wearing my curly hair in its natural state, and been called terrible names for my big lips and features. As soon as I entered college, I found writing to be my absolute therapy to heal these wounds, and writing itself has become an instrument to encourage body positivity, sisterhood, self-acceptance, and embracing your natural beauty. Other personal experiences have also inspired me to write about honoring our African descent in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, the absolute need of feminism in our machista society, decolonization, love, lust, heartbreak, grief, and many other topics which surround us in the world.
How do you balance and/or mix poetry and academia?
Being a Masters student is learning to schedule basically everything you do. I managed to find a way to involve myself in the poetry community and succeed in academia, by incorporating it in my Intermediate English classes. As an INGL 3104 instructor, I have found the space to share my passion for poetry with my students, and encourage them daily to express themselves, which also leads them to write their thoughts out. Ever since last semester, due to Hurricane María, students have found writing in my classroom as a comforting way to vent out their feelings, and including self-reflections in my class has also helped my students and myself to grow personally and professionally. When I have the time, I perform in various Open Mics and Poetry Slams, and co-publish in different literary magazines, such as Sábanas Magazine and El Vicio del Tintero, to keep up with the tradition of spreading verses to our communities.
(Ayala Lugo alongside other members of the presentation Women Write the Caribbean as found in the Coloquio ¿Del otro la’o?: perspectivas y debates sobre lo cuir)
What do you think about the current state of the arts in Puerto Rico?
I think it is important to support each other as artists, musicians, and appreciators, if we want to help echar pa’ alante a Puerto Rico. We are going through tough times, all because of different factors, such as natural disasters, corruption, and social inequality. This has placed artists in a difficult position, and it is sad, because Puerto Rico is filled with musical and artistic talent. I find it so necessary to keep supporting talento local, and encourage our current and incoming generations to find their calling within the arts, whether as a musician, singer, dancer, photographer, film maker, painter, writer (etc.), or as an appreciator. We need to keep it up!
What do you look to achieve with your work?
I am aspiring to continue publishing poetic anthologies, collaborating with groups like Vox Populi and La Alianza, participating in different slams and encuentros de poetas, and hopefully contribute in various magazines to expand my audience and share what I love to do. I have recently been accepted to collaborate with La Respuesta magazine, and I am looking forward to show my future readers who I was, am, and will be.
(cover for Diario de un Labial Atrofiado)
What do you think about the current state of the independent scene in Puerto Rico?
As mentioned before, I highly advise mi gente to support our talento local. I think supporting our local talent will help us develop resistance, perseverance, and help our voices become heard.
Is there any other form of art you wish to pursue? If so, what field and why?
I would also like to model for local photographers; we have so many beautiful sceneries in Puerto Rico, and it would be an honor to capture my love and appreciation for our nature in these breathtaking pictures. It might also be amazing to blend my poetry with photography as well.
If a young girl came up to you and said she wanted to be an artist, what would be your advice for her?
I would tell her to follow her dreams, to not be afraid of being herself. I would tell her to turn positive and negative experiences into art. Who knows where it will lead her in the future. Without art, we are nothing.
(picture of Ayala Lugo reciting poetry in a Vox Populi: Puerto Rico event)
What is your biggest goal right now?
I would like to continue expanding my literary audience, as I pursue a new experience, this August, as a Ph.D. student in Caribbean Literature at UPR Río Piedras. I would like to travel abroad, perform my poetry around the globe, and inspire others to find their callings as writers. My biggest satisfaction is when people come up to me and tell me their accomplishments; some have even told me they couldn’t have succeeded without my inspiration as a writer, and these are the little things that keep me going.
Find Celia Margarita Ayala Lugo on Facebook and her books Diario de un Labial Atrofiado and Ramos de Vidrio.