University of Tampa to host gallery featuring renowned Cuban artists

The artists’ work is considered a seminal exhibit on pre- and post-Revolutionary Cuban art.
The artists’ work is considered a seminal exhibit on pre- and post-Revolutionary Cuban art. | Contributed photo

The University of Tampa will hold an art gallery entitled “Growing Up in Neverland” this March, featuring a collection of works by renowned contemporary Cuban artists Ernesto Leal, Pedro Pablo Oliva, Sandra Ramos, Lázaro Saavedra, Esterio Segura, José A. Vincench and the collective known as the Merger.

The combination of these artists’ work is considered a seminal exhibit on pre- and post-Revolutionary Cuban art. It reflects upon the everyday life of Cubans and the concerns they deal with as Cuban society heads into the future.

“The artists in this exhibit have created vehicles for understanding the complexity of contemporary life and art in Cuba,” David Horta, Pinar del Rio-based curator of the exhibit, said. “And the Scarfone/Hartley Gallery is an ideal setting for the kind of free and open discussions this exhibition is designed to stimulate.”

In a highlight of the exhibit, Saavedra – one of Cuba’s most celebrated and respected living artists – will create a large-format piece during the exhibit’s run. Other highlights include the inclusion of Segura’s work, which has been on display New York’s Museum of Modern Art, and Oliva’s work, which is noted internationally as potently poetic and subtly political.

The exhibit will take place in the university’s Scarfone/Hartley Gallery March 4-18.