This article analyses Rita Indiana Hernandez's La Mucama de Omicunle. The text's main objective is to examine the predicament in the present moment of the debates on subalternity and cultural institutions in contemporary Caribbean literature. The frequent references to contemporary art present in the novel establish a rupture with previous works, with allows us to contextualize her production from a critical perspective, attentive not only to the predominance of visual culture and consumerism, but also to the agency of cultural institutions capable of subverting and appropriating subaltern discourses.