Vulnerability may compromise one’s privacy, but it is also rooted in the powers of self-advocacy, healing, and growth. The counter-behavior to vulnerability is repression, the aggressive act of slamming one’s internal doors shut and locking them, refusing to allow anyone in or out. These doors are wide open with David Rios Ferreira: in fact, he’s even added a welcome mat.

Now that we’re a few weeks into the imposed social distancing restrictions and non-essential business closures, the art world has adjusted to the sudden shift toward increased online presence. Galleries and museums have been digitally curating their current and upcoming exhibitions through online viewing rooms and separate portal websites.

Self-quarantining and social distancing restrictions are ramping up across the world. Universities, galleries, venues, and museums have closed their doors for the time being, resulting in countless event cancellations and offering no certainty regarding future scheduling. Now that the rug has been pulled from under them, millions of artists are redirecting their audiences by doubling down on their online presence.

Firelei Báez debuts her new, meticulously rendered paintings in her second exhibition with James Cohan Gallery. Báez is known for her devotion to researching and reclaiming diasporic histories through Afro-Caribbean and Latin mythology and iconography.