Cuban Art and the Economy
The soviet bloc collapsed in 1989, what followed in Cuba was a 4 year Special Period, during which the state began to loosen its complete control over the economy. International groups came to collaborate on projects and self-employed Cubans began to create small businesses in gastronomy, music, film-making, and art. In 1992, three students from Instituto Superior de Art — Havana’s most reputed art school — began an artist collective. They called themselves Los Carpinteros, with the traditional blend of art, function, and design.
Dagoberto Rodríguez Sánchez live and work in Madrid, Spain
Alexandre Jesús Arrechea Zambrano member until 2003, lives and works in Madrid, Spain
Even though they had limited resources, their work caught they eye of renowned art collectors including Peter Ludwig, who set up the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, with the mission of protecting and promoting Cuban art in and outside Cuba.
Abel Prieto, Cuba’s minister of Culture (1997–2001), was supportive of establishing an exchange framework for the arts, and convinced more conservative members of the government to allow artists to travel and work abroad, and bring the capital back into Cuba without many restrictions.
Today, as Cuba slowly, steadily opens, the art-scene may experience an overload of collectors and buyers interested in their work. While some worry that this will reduce the quality of art and reduce the buyers’ personal interactions with the artists themselves, this may be a positive economic stimulus for the artistic community and their families.
