"The Light Inside is a study of an Afro-Cuban secret society, its sacred arts, and their role in modern Cuban cultural history.".

"Enslaved Africans and creoles developed the Abakua Society, a system of men's fraternal lodges, in urban Cuba beginning in 1836. Drawing on years of fieldwork in the country, Brown's novel approach builds on close readings of dazzling Abakua altars, chalk-drawn signs, and hooded masquerades.

In his art history of Abakua altars, Brown not only traces changing styles but also shows how they evolve through cycles of tradition and renovation. "The light inside" reflects the essence of the artists' creativity and experience: through adornment, altars project the powerful spirituality of Abakua practice, an aesthetic strategy the author treats with an insider's passion and a scholar's rigor."--BOOK JACKET.