Juan Roberto Diago’s Un hijo de Dios uses recurrent imagery and processes in his work. The image of a frontal bust with an oval face, a long neck, and two different eyes have been a Diago constant over the years. A stitched seam at the center of the composition serves as a vertical axis that divides/unites the two different halves of this man. The hybrid nature of the figure is reinforced by the text underneath that reads “al lado tuyo” (beside you), which, in combination with the title, acquires a religious connotation. Stripes of black paint around the borders of the canvas serve as a frame for the figure, which lies directly on the raw, unbleached calico—one of the only textile materials made available to slaves. The stitches on the fabric resemble a keloid. This kind of scar is fifteen times more likely to appear in people of African descent than in those of other races. Therefore, Diago, a black Cuban, has adopted it as a sign of identity.  Diago’s research focuses on the African slave Diaspora and its repercussion in society today through racism, oral traditions, and religion, amongst other related subjects. In Cuba, racism was long disregarded as the Revolution allegedly exterminated all inequality from society. At a time when racism was an unimportant subject for other disciplines in the humanities, Black and mulatto artists like Diago and his colleagues began the crucial conversations about slavery and its effect on society today.