Josaradesign: Family and Community Through Food

Savor the flavors of Josaradesign‘s designs featuring the food of her Dominican and Salvadoran cultures—from platano to chinola—in harmony with a vivacious color palette.

For Joely of Josaradesigns, the food of her cultures is a catalyst for connection and memories. In celebration of Latina/o/x Heritage Month, we asked Joely to walk us through the significance of food in her culture and her family.

Featured Piece: Greca on Pink

From Joely: “The greca is a staple in almost all Latino/x households. There are some grecas that have been in homes for years and years. This piece makes me think of my mother because the bright pink background is reminiscent of the houses in the Dominican Republic where she is from. She brews Café Bustelo every morning and afternoon in her greca till this day and the smell always makes me think of her. There’s no better time spent than with my mom, splitting a hot cup of coffee with some buttered toast dipped in.”

Featured Piece: Platano Stages

From Joely: “I always said I could survive on platanos alone but when I was a teenager learning how to cook them, I would always forget which one was sweet and which one was salty. That was the idea behind this piece. Platano Stages shows the ripening process of a platano and the variety of shades it develops into. I am very inspired by Andy Warhol’s repetition in his silkscreen prints so I wanted this piece to feel like a one-of-a-kind print where the outline is just a tiny bit off-center.”

Featured Piece: Tostones

From Joely: “We have tostones on the side of almost everything; rice, salami, and even spaghetti! I remember asking my mom one day after school for just a bowl of tostones for dinner with a side of ketchup and she fried them up just perfectly. Inspired by the ceramics from the Dominican Republic, I chose warm earth tones and simple lines to imitate iconography carved into terracotta.”

Featured Piece: Chinola

From Joely: “I had chinola juice for the first time when I was about 10 years old and my taste buds haven’t been the same since. I look forward to a nice cold chinola from the bakery alongside a pastelito. Passion fruit is as beautiful to look at as it is to enjoy and that is why I love this piece. The vibrant colors of the fruit against the background are a pop art dream.”

Featured Piece: Maduros

From Joely: “Maduros hold a special place in my heart because I’m half Salvadoran, so in a typical Salvadoran breakfast you have maduros with crema. You wait until the platano has just the right amount of black and brown spots on it to cut it open and begin frying. This piece was fun to create because I got to interpret the ripeness and the textures through contrasting, abstract shapes. My favorite parts are the black crispy bits on the edges!”