Cuban Art - Art in Post-Revolutionary Cuba

Art in Post-Revolutionary Cuba

The aftermath of the Cuban revolution in the 1960s brought new restrictions igniting an exodus of intellectuals and artists; primarily they composed of white elitists. The new regime required “a practice of culture as ideological propaganda, along with a stereotyped nationalism”. Although the government policies which were driven by limited resources did narrow artistic expression it expanded, through education and subsidies, a greater number of people who could practice art: braking down elitist barriers through democratization and socialization. The increasing influence of the Soviet Union in the 1960s and 70’s did impact Cuban culture, but Cuba did not match the U.S.S.R in the degree of artistic controls on exhibiting, publishing and employment.

Cubans were still intent on reinforcing a Cuban identity rooted in its own culture. The simultaneous assimilation or synthesis of the tenets of modern western art and the development of Afro-Cuban art schools and movements created a new Cuban culture. Art proliferated under state programs of sponsorship and employment during this post-revolutionary period by both politicizing its content and inspiring confidence in the people within the framework of Cuba’s reinvented nationalism. Nelson Dominguez and Roberto Fabelo went from Abstraction and Neoexpressionism of the 1950s, to immortalizing the proletariat, farmers, workers and soldiers, while continuing many of the techniques they learned under the tutelage of Antonia Eiriz Vázquez. By combining nationalism with the politicization of art, artists maintained a level of freedom that continues to inspire innovation.