Cuban Espiritismo is based on the mid-nineteenth century metaphysical explorations and publications of the French spiritist Allan Kardec. In the 1860s, the movement made its way to Cuba and the rest of the Caribbean, where it was enthusiastically received. Broadly defined, Spiritism is a body of doctrines and clairvoyant techniques aimed at summoning spirits of the dead to interact with the living. This is generally achieved with the help of a human medium who directly or indirectly channels the energy of these beings. Spiritists such as Santiago work to free dead souls from the base “material” world and help them attain successive degrees of enlightenment. In return, the departed guide and empower the living. An eclectic movement from its inception, Spiritism assumed many guises in its new creole (i.e. Cuban) environment. The final photographic segment in the show is devoted to Santiago’s celebration of a “spiritual mass,” a uniquely Cuban ceremony performed in honor of the departed that culminates in the boisterous arrival of the Congo spirits of the dead, down-to-earth spirits of superior healing energy who interact with all members of the congregation.

Healing is the primary focus of all religious activity in Santiago’s house. As such, it is the powerful conceptual thread linking all parts of this exhibition. Whether in the form of communal ritualizing, religious initiation, or the one-on-one spirit work that characterizes his private practice, Santiago’s ability to help others engages him at his full potential, as a gifted and versatile practitioner of three remarkable and, on various levels, intertwined religions. Through photographs and accompanying text panels, this exhibition provides a visual and emotional entry into Santiago’s world and evokes the dynamism and spiritual resonance of life as lived in his ritual family, a family that to an extent the authors now claim as their own.

Claire Garoutte and Anneke Wambaugh bring years of experience and research to this exhibition. Their evocative photographs not only draw the viewer into a world rarely witnessed by outsiders. They offer viewers an unprecedented opportunity to better understand the diversity of Afro-Cuban religious traditions. This deeply affecting visual document encourages its audience to look beyond stereotypical depictions of a religious culture and a nation that have so often been misrepresented and misunderstood.