Sometimes the best art happens in your own back yard. In this case the Cuban Links exhibition at the Dorchester Center for the Arts, excellently guest-curated by Jon West-Bey. He is a lecturer at Johns Hopkins University, and a curator, museum consultant, and owner of West-Bey Consulting in Washington, DC. For the Cambridge exhibition he explored Cuban history and culture through the lenses of three contemporary artists. While only one of the male artists West-Bey selected is actually Cuban-born, in the exhibition he aims to explore Cuba’s history through the eyes of these three contemporary artists.
Ceremonia by Lazaro Batista
Acrylic on Canvas 2024 24 × 18
The second artist in the group, Ulysses Marshall, born in Vienna, Georgia, received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore, Maryland. Then, he received the Phillip Morris Fellowship and Master of Fine Arts degree under the instruction of no less than Grace Hartigan, Hoffberger School of Painting, also at MICA. He received the Distinguished Whitney Independent Study Fellowship in New York and several Maryland State Art Council Individual Artist Awards.
Samuel “Sami” Miranda grew up in the South Bronx and resides in Washington, DC. He is a multidisciplinary artist, poet, and teacher who uses his craft to highlight the value of everyday people and places. He is also the Chairman of the American Poetry Museum in Washington, DC.
Cuban Links invites viewers to embark on a journey through the time and space to encounter the diverse narratives that shape the Cuban experience. By bringing together these three distinct artistic voices, the exhibition aims to foster a deeper understanding of Cuba’s rich and complex history, its enduring impact on the present, and its potential for the future according to Jon West-Bay’s Curatorial Statement.
A catalogue accompanies the exhibition, handsomely designed by Janet Hendricks, currently Instructional Arts Coordinator at the Dorchester Center for the Arts. Most of the information quoted here can be found in the catalogue and here. The exhibition is open until Saturday, April 26 at the Dorchester Center for the Arts 321 High Street, Cambridge, MD 21613. Check the website for hours.
Anke Van Wagenberg, PhD, is Senior Curator & Head of International Collaborations at the American Federation of Arts in New York and lives in Talbot County, MD.
Chris Gordon says
What is gained by making it illegal for my wife and I to visit Cuba? We have been there, illegally, three times now and found it a fascinating place to visit. The music, the artworks, the baseball (my favorite), the friendly, welcoming Cubans have been a joy to meet. My Canadian friends have been there several times, perfectly legally. Why should we be so deprived? Please, if you are reading this, lobby our government to give us back the freedom we once had to travel wherever we want.