Cuban cultural exchange in Key West draws ire from some exiles
Posted on Saturday, 03.08.14
Cuban cultural exchange in Key West draws ire from some exiles
By Cammy Clark
cclark@MiamiHerald.com
Renowned contemporary Cuban artist Roberto Fabelo gazed at his painting of a large rooster with two nude women riding it like a horse.
“The rooster has the splendor, color, vitality and a certain amount of machismo, but here are the two women controlling it,” he said, laughing. “It represents the fabulous part of life.”
The work, Fantastic Voyage Key West, is one of three major pieces Fabelo brought to Key West as part of the two-country exhibit “Una Raza/One Race.” Curators from Cuba and the United States tout it as groundbreaking, the first cultural exchange between art institutions of the two politically hostile neighbors in the 55 years since Fidel Castro took power.
But while most of Key West has welcomed the contingent — including host sites The Studios of Key West, the Hemingway Home & Museum, the Oldest House & Garden Museum, The Florida Council of the Arts and the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum — a strong minority voice has criticized the exchange from the start.
And notably not participating in the exhibit is the San Carlos Institute, a heritage center founded in 1871 by Cuban exiles who came to Key West to plan the campaign for Cuba’s independence from Spain.
More:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/03/08/3976232/cuban-cultural-exchange-in-key.html#storylink=cpy
[center]
(Jose Marti, Cuba's most famous poet, in the center)
[/center]
