One morning as I rose, a vision of a chango in a vortex came to me. Then I brought that vision to life.

Chango Vortex is a hand-painted public mural commissioned by Urbe Apie for Caguas’ Centro Urbano (Municipal Urban Center), blending Caribbean symbolism, rhythm, and street art energy. Inspired by the toroidal form, the vortex suggests both endless repetition and the potential for transformation.

Are we spiraling toward collapse or breaking through to the other side? Only the chango knows!

The Greater Antillean grackle—colloquially known as the chango—is a bold, clever, and often-overlooked witness to daily life in Puerto Rico. Here, it becomes a spectral force embedded within the mural’s swirling motion: not fully seen but felt like a trickster’s invitation to look deeper.