Yagrumo

The Yagrumo leaf grows in Puerto Rico’s rainforest. They can become so large that people have used them as makeshift umbrellas during sudden showers—a story my mother often told. Even after falling, the leaves remain striking: they bleach and darken as they curl inward, forming elegant, sculptural shapes.

The leaves I make are inspired by those from Puerto Rico’s rainforest. As a child, my mother sent me to gather them from the forest floor. I am fascinated by the peculiar beauty that emerges as the leaves die and fall: sun-bleached, twisted into gnarled, finger-like curls. They are a recreation of my childhood memories—fragile, beautiful, and filled with a longing for moments that have passed.