The recent addition of Frank Pellot's captivating exhibition Borikén Presente, currently at the Bronx Library Center through December 2, has engaged Bronxites, inviting viewers to look deeper into Pellot's artwork to see what's really on the canvas. 

Frank Pellot's Puerto Rican-influenced paintings capture the vibrant culture and people of "La Isla del Encanto" ("The Island of Enchantment"). All the bright colors, familiar Boricua flora and fauna, and Puerto Rican flags create a stimulating motif that one feels as soon as entering the BLC's Latino and Puerto Rican Cultural Center.

Pellot claims his work is influenced by his life experiences in Puerto Rico; during his childhood, he would practice his art while friends went outside to play. Members of the Puerto Rican diaspora might find comfort and joy in the beautifully painted coqui and faceless accordion player seated upon a stoop next to a little mesita bearing a tip box that reads "Gracias" ("Thank You"). 

My favorite piece is a painting of a monkey seated upon two books that read "WAKE UP YOUR MIND". The apropos painting is a reminder to expand one's knowledge by continuously reading books; at the Bronx Library Center, we have no shortage of fresh reading material.

Borikén Presente is free and open to the public through December 2, 2019. For more, you can watch a Bronxnet interview with Frank Pellot.