Constructed with recycled materials, this piece addresses the effects of disinformation in Puerto Rico following the devastation caused by Hurricane María in 2017. It is part of the series Sprout Again, which Elsa María Meléndez developed from 2018 to 2019 to examine nature’s renewal and society’s slow and arduous recovery: “This work is about the trap of disinformation. The disastrous response to the hurricane was political; the hurricane had a catastrophic impact on us, but the biggest disaster was due to the lack of protective policies to guarantee a just recovery and that could have prevented the death of 4,645 people.” Meléndez used leftover pieces of fabric and other materials from prior projects, creating a continuum from one work to the next that echoes her ongoing interest in themes of social justice in Puerto Rico. 

Gisela Carbonell, Curator Rollins Museum of Art