SAN LUIS POTOSÍ, Mexico.- The renowned artist Cuban Erik Ravelo will inaugurate this Saturday, October 5, in Miami, an individual exhibition dedicated to the defense of human rights, freedom, and Cuba.
According to the exhibition’s press release, it is the first individual exhibition held by the artist in the United States. Request Having joined important international campaigns for the United Nations, Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders and Benetton, Ravelo, the only Cuban winner of the Cannes Grand Prix thanks to his campaign Unhate For Benetton, it exposes a denunciation of human rights violations.
“I will exhibit many different works that reflect on different themes. I will present paintings, photos, videos and installations from different periods of my artistic life,” he wrote on his social networks about the exhibition.
And he continued: “My work is strong, and talks about sensitive topics, so this is an Art Exhibition not adapted (sic) for people who are easily offended or for those who carry a weak heart. It is not an exhibition only to enjoy beautiful paintings, but also to reflect and debate about the times we live in.”
Curated by Jade Matarazzo, the exhibition will be open to the public at 6:30 pm. this Saturday in The House of Artsat 100 NW 36th Street, Miami.
Among the works The installation “Magdalena de los Corazones Rotos” will be included, inspired by the story of a young Cuban woman murdered and found in a garbage container in Cuba, as well as a portrait of the Cuban artist and political prisoner Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, composed of stripes that mark the days of his imprisonment.
Likewise, it will form the exhibition “Free yourself from your chains”, a work in which Ravelo invites the public to be part of the creative process. It is a representation of the island of Cuba made of chains, where each participant “can leave a chain, symbolizing personal and collective liberation from the ties that oppress.”
“In his series about Cuban immigrants, Ravelo captures the pain of exile and the fight for freedom, drawing inspiration from his own experiences growing up in Cuba and the diaspora stories of those displaced by political and social tumult. “His moving portraits highlight the disconnection between identity and place, reflecting resilience in the midst of adversity,” says the exhibition note.
Years ago, Erik Ravelo’s work “Doctrina” caused a sensation among Cubans, which vehemently criticized the acts of repudiation in Cuba and the use of children in these repressive actions.
Using the image of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro and a crucified child (with his face pixelated), he declared: “Enough of acts of repudiation. No to the presence of children in acts of repudiation. “No to children’s political indoctrination.”
Ravelo’s work has been present in several cities in Europe, Asia and the United States, and in global exhibitions, such as the Vienna Biennale (2011), Arte Fiera (2014), Miart (2013) and Fábrica: Los Ojos Abiertos (2006), in collaboration with the Pompidou Center in Paris.
For his work, he has received several awards and recognitions, such as the Press Grand Prix at the International Festival of Creativity in Cannes; the Clío Gold Award and two Gold Pencils from the One Show Awards (2012), for his campaign UNHATE; and the Epic Silver Award (2014), for The Untouchables.
