Reyna Noriega is an Afro-Latina visual artist in Miami who loves to share her culture through her art. Now, you can wear her art with her special collab with Tier, a fashion design company in New York. Together, Noriega and the people at Tier worked together to create a collection for BACARDÍ titled “Rooted in Rhythm.” Noriega spoke with FIERCE by mitú about her inspiration for the collection and working with a legacy brand. She also talked about wanting to share her Cuban and Bahamian cultures through art.

Reyna Noriega is the artist behind the “Rooted in Rhythm” limited-edition fashion collection

The collection, titled “Rooted in Rhythm,” is a nod to the music and dancing that is pivotal in the Caribbean. Our communities are filled with rhythm from salsa to bomba to plena. Our music is a source of cultural pride. Hearing the name of the genres conjures up images of vibrant colors, stunning outfits, and smooth and sensual rhythmic dancing. Even if the music varies between the islands, Noriega understands how integral music and dance are for Caribbean people. This is what Noriega leaned into when it came to her collaboration with Tier for BACARDÍ.

“Movement and dance is a way to celebrate, to bond, to shake off any stressors. It holds so much of our history and even speaks to where our people and cultures derived from,” Noriega tells FIERCE by mitú. “Palm trees are also a common motif in my work as it nods to the Caribbean as well as growing up in the very tropical Miami as the daughter of Latin and Caribbean immigrants.”

Fashion, according to Noriega, is an important part of sharing who she is with people. It gives her a chance to make more first impressions with more potential collectors. Her journey as an artist has taken her into fashion before. “Rooted in Rhythm” is another opportunity to keep expanding her repertoire.

Working with BACARDÍ is a full-circle moment to expand her artistic reach

BACARDÍ is more than a brand steeped in Caribbean culture. It is one of the first brands she worked with as an artist. Her art leans into the same movement and vibrancy one would envision when thinking about the Caribbean. She has mastered the ability to capture movement in her art pieces. The paintings capture the subjects mid-dance. Turning her attention to fashion gives her a unique ability to keep sharing what makes the Caribbean so special

“I admire what Nigeria Ealey has built with Tier and and in the beginning of my full time art career BACARDÍ was one of the first brands I partnered with to do illustrations for their Women in Leadership Spirit Forward summit,” Noriega explains to FIERCE by mitú. “I have grown so much since that opportunity so it was nice to once again lend my vision to the brands to celebrate my culture and women.”

She knows the importance of being authentic professionally and personally

As a woman of color in art, Noriega wants her work to do more than expose new people to the culture. She wants her art, and fashion collaboration, to give Caribbean people a source of pride. Something that they can wear to show the world who they are and that they are here.

“It is at the core of my mission as a digital artist that my designs not only represent my culture, but are also accessible,” Noriega tells FIERCE by mitú. “I love creating products that my community can shop and enjoy, integrating it into their lives as an ongoing reminder of their value and unique light in this world.”

Also at the core of her work is some advice she got during her career as an artist that still resonates with her today.

“The first would be to accept that I was an artist and just show up like one. Don’t wait for outside validation, validate yourself with your own work ethic,” Noriega shares with FIERCE by mitú. “The other would be to share. Share a lot and share authentically. You can’t find community if you are hoarding your ideas.”
If you want to get a piece of the Reyna Noriega x Tier collaboration for BACARDÍ, you can find it here.

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