News
Release
July 1, 2011
Polaridad Complementaria: Recent Works from Cuba
MEDIA
CONTACTS:
Housatonic Museum of Art @Housatonic Community College
Robbin Zella, Director, 203-332-5052, RZella@hcc.commnet.edu
International Arts & Artists: Margalit Monroe, tel: 202.338.0680
e-mail: margalitm@artsandartists.org
EXHIBITION OF Internationally recognized contemporary Cuban artists to TRAVEL to North America
Bridgeport, CT: The Housatonic Museum of Art is pleased
to announce Polaridad Complementaria: Recent Works from Cuba, an
exhibition that introduces North America to the new generation
of influential artists from Cuba. Polaridad Complementaria is
on view in the Burt Chernow Galleries at the Housatonic Museum of Art
from August 15 through October 20, 2011
Developed by the Centro de Arte Contemporaneo Wifredo Lam, Havana, Polaridad
Complementaria offers audiences the opportunity to become acquainted
with the island’s current and upcoming artistic talent. More
than 40 works of painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, video and
installation art provide a sense of the serious aesthetic and conceptual
concerns that characterizes Cuban art today. The 24 artists presented
here are mainly young artists who have attained international recognition.
The majority of these artists have taken part in fairs and biennials
abroad and all have exhibited in Europe, Latin America and were featured
in various editions of the Havana Biennial. Several have exhibited
in the United States, including René Peña, Abel Barroso,
Aimeé García, Yoan Capote, Eduardo Ponjuán, Lázaro
Saavedra, Sandra Ramos and Roberto Fabelo.
Often compared to American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, artist
René Peña explores the relationship between individuals
within society and the struggle for their own identity. Abel Barroso
carves three-dimensional pieces using wood and various printing methods
to create a conversation about technology and the third-world. From
Zulueta, Cuba, Duvier del Dago takes things one step further, combining
drawing with handmade 3D design examining the unattainable, whether
it be the material or the ideal. From simplistic to intricately fabricated,
these artists create a narrative of Cuba today.
Diverse in both medium and themes, the artists featured in Polaridad
Complementaria understand the power of their art to address a
wide range of social issues. The exhibition highlights works that connect
the local context with global concerns and universal human issues.
After many years, Polaridad Complementaria opens a pathway
for dialogue and cultural exchange between Cuba and the United States,
two countries with historic ties and common cultural processes, despite
troubled relations.
Margarita Sánchez Prieto is curator, researcher and
art critic at Centro de Arte Contemporaneo Wifredo Lam in Havana and recipient
of the National Prize of Curatorship at the 2000 Havana Biennial. She has curated
various exhibitions and lectured extensively on Cuban and Latin American art
throughout South America, Europe and Canada. Her work has been published in
various art magazines and she is the author of the anthology An Outlook
of Latin American Art in the Decade of 1980.
Director of the Wifredo Lam Contemporary Art Centre and curator and
art critic of the Havana Biennial, Jorge Fernandez Torres has
curated over 15 major exhibitions in Cuba, Spain, Central, and South
America. He was a member of the Commission for Cuban Cultural Development
of UNESCO in 1997 and on the Advisory Council for the Arts of the National
Library of Cuba in 2000 and 2001 as well as Vice Rector of the Higher
Institute of Arts in Havana for the past ten years. He is the Author
of several texts in catalogues of Cuban art and as professor of contemporary
art at the Higher Institute of Arts (ISA), and has lectured all over
the world.
Polaridad Complementaria: Recent Works from Cuba was developed by
the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo Wifredo Lam, Havana
and is toured by International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC.
Scheduled tour dates for Polaridad Complementaria: Recent Works
from Cuba are as follows: Newcomb Art Gallery, Tulane University,
New Orleans, LA (January 16, 2010 to March 14, 2010); Sonoma County
Museum of Art, Santa Rosa, CA (June 16, 2010 to August 29, 2010); Chicago
Cultural Center, IL (October 16, 2010 to December 30, 2010); City Gallery
at Waterfront Park, Charleston, SC (February 4, 2011 to March 28, 2011);
Housatonic Museum of Art, Bridgeport, CT (August 15, 2011 to October
20, 2011). For an updated tour schedule, please visit http://artsandartists.org/exhibitions/cubanart.html.
Centro de Arte Contemporaneo Wifredo Lam is dedicated to the
promotion of both contemporary Cuban art and the art of the countries of the
so-called Third World. Its main purpose is organizing the Havana Biennial.
The Center also promotes and investigates the work of the vanguard master Wifredo
Lam as well as the current artistic production of South American countries.
International Arts & Artists in Washington, DC, is a non-profit
arts service organization dedicated to increasing cross-cultural understanding
and exposure to the arts internationally, through exhibitions, programs and
services to artists, arts institutions and the public. Visit www.artsandartists.org
Housatonic Community
College provides an affordable and accessible education through two-year degrees,
transfer preparation, and certificate programs, as well as a wide variety of
continuing education and personal/professional enrichment seminars and workshops. In
addition, HCC offers employee and occupational training for businesses, municipalities,
government agencies, and professional associations to help develop the educated
and skilled workforce required to meet regional business and industry needs. HCC
is nationally recognized as an “Achieving the Dream” institution. To
learn more, visit the college’s website at: www.hcc.commnet.edu.
HCC is located at 900 Lafayette Blvd. in downtown Bridgeport, less
than 150 yards off I-95 (Exit 27) and Rte. 8 (Exit 1), a block from the Webster
Bank Arena at Harbor Yard. Free parking is available in the Housatonic garage.
Installation photo(s) provided by International Arts and Artists. For Hi-Res image please contact Anson Smilth by email.
Anson C. Smith, Public Relations Coordinator
Housatonic Community College
900 Lafayette Blvd.
Bridgeport, CT 06604
Tel: 203-332-5229, Fax: 203-332-5247
E-mail: asmith@hcc.commnet.edu