Aphrodite (From the Series "Land of Relics")

Oil on Canvas. Unframed 55"x39" / 140cm x 100cm

In this work from Land of Relics, Cuban artist Maikel Benítez turns once again to the potent intersection of classical mythology and the lived, timeworn surfaces of La Habana. Here, a headless Aphrodite stands before a weathered doorway—her marble body luminous against the peeling walls, cracked pavement, and faded colors of the city. The sculpture’s presence feels at once accidental and destined, as though unearthed from Havana’s very foundation and placed gently back into the streetscape to which it somehow belongs.

Benítez draws a poignant parallel between Aphrodite’s fragmented form and the architectural erosion surrounding her. Both the goddess and the city bear the marks of time, yet radiate a quiet, resilient beauty. The red and green door behind her—sealed, worn, and heavy with history—acts almost as a ceremonial backdrop, transforming the urban façade into a makeshift shrine. At her feet, a small puddle of water becomes a quiet metaphor—an echo of Aphrodite’s ancient connection to purification and rejuvenation, and a subtle reminder of the deep desire for this city to one day become what it once was.

The overall feeling is one of elegiac serenity. The painting suggests a Havana that carries its wounds with grace, where remnants of the classical world mingle with the daily realities of a city in perpetual transformation. By placing the ancient goddess within this fractured environment, Benítez invites the viewer to see Havana as a living ruin—vulnerable yet enduring, fractured yet sacred, a place where beauty persists not in spite of time, but because of it.