''Guerrillero Heroico'' ( en, "Heroic Guerrilla Fighter") is an iconic
photograph
A photograph (also known as a photo, image, or picture) is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are now create ...
of
Marxist
Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
revolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.
...
Che Guevara
Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...
taken by
Alberto Korda
Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez, better known as Alberto Korda or simply Korda (September 14, 1928 – May 25, 2001), was a Cuban photographer, remembered for his famous image ''Guerrillero Heroico'' of Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara.
...
. It was captured on March 5, 1960, in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
,
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
, at a memorial service for victims of the ''La Coubre'' explosion. By the end of the 1960s, the image, in conjunction with Guevara's subsequent actions and eventual execution, helped solidify the leader as a
cultural icon
A cultural icon is a person or an artifact that is identified by members of a culture as representative of that culture. The process of identification is subjective, and "icons" are judged by the extent to which they can be seen as an authentic ...
.Communists, Capitalists still buy into Iconic Che Photo, Author says by Brian Byrnes, ''
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
'', May 5, 2009 Korda has said that at the moment he shot the picture, he was drawn to Guevara's facial expression, which showed "absolute implacability" as well as anger and pain.''Che Guevara: Revolutionary & Icon'', by Trisha Ziff, Abrams Image, 2006, pg 15 Years later, Korda would say that the photograph showed Che's firm and stoic character. Guevara was 31 years old at the time the photograph was taken.
Emphasizing the image's ubiquitous nature and wide appeal, the
Maryland Institute College of Art
The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is a private art and design college in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, making it one of the oldest art colleges in the U ...
called the picture a symbol of the 20th century and the world's most famous photograph. Versions of it have been painted, printed, digitized, embroidered, tattooed, silk-screened, sculpted or sketched on nearly every surface imaginable, leading the
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
to say that the photograph has been reproduced more than any other image in photography. Jonathan Green, director of the
UCR/California Museum of Photography
The UCR/California Museum of Photography (CMP) is an off-campus institution and department of the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at the University of California, Riverside, California, USA. The collections of UCR/CMP form the la ...
, has speculated that
Korda's image has worked its way into languages around the world. It has become an alpha-numeric symbol, a hieroglyph, an instant symbol. It mysteriously reappears whenever there's a conflict. There isn’t anything else in history that serves in this way.
The history and contemporary global impact of the image is the basis for the 2008 documentary ''
Chevolution
''Chevolution'' is a 2008 documentary film which examines the history and legacy of the photo ''Guerrillero Heroico'' taken by famous Cuban photographer Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez. This image has thrived for the decades since Che Guevara's death an ...
'', directed by Trisha Ziff, along with the 2009 book ''Che's Afterlife: The Legacy of an Image'' by Michael Casey.
Origins
On March 4, 1960, the French freighter ''La Coubre'' exploded in
Havana Harbor
Havana Harbor is the port of Havana, the capital of Cuba, and it is the main port in Cuba (not including Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, a territory on lease by the United States). Other port cities in Cuba include Cienfuegos, Matanzas, Manzanillo, ...
, killing up to 100 people and injuring several hundred more.''Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life'', by
Jon Lee Anderson
Jon Lee Anderson (born January 15, 1957) is an American biographer, author, investigative reporter, war correspondent, and staff writer for ''The New Yorker'', reporting from war zones such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Uganda, Palestine, El Salvador, Ir ...
, 1997, pg 442 Upon hearing the blast, Guevara rushed to the harbor to board the burning ship, angrily forcing his way past those concerned for his safety following a secondary explosion.
The following day on March 5, President
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
blamed the U.S.
CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
and called for a memorial service and mass demonstration at Havana's
Colón Cemetery
El Cementerio de Cristóbal Colón, also called La Necrópolis de Cristóbal Colón, was founded in 1876 in the Vedado neighbourhood of Havana, Cuba to replace the Espada Cemetery in the Barrio de San Lázaro. Named for Christopher Columbus, t ...
, to honor the victims. At the time, Guevara was Minister of Industry in the new government, and Korda was Castro's official photographer. After a funeral march along the seafront boulevard known as
Malecón
A jetty is a structure that projects from land out into water. A jetty may serve as a breakwater, as a walkway, or both; or, in pairs, as a means of constricting a channel. The term derives from the French word ', "thrown", signifying somet ...
, Fidel Castro gave a eulogy for the fallen at a stage on the corner of 23rd and 12th streets.Obit: Alberto Korda
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
, May 28, 2001 Castro gave a fiery speech, using the words ''"Patria o Muerte"'' ("Homeland or Death") for the first time. Meanwhile, at 11:20 am, Guevara came into view for a few seconds. Korda snapped just two frames of him from a distance of about before he disappeared from sight. Korda immediately realised his photograph had the attributes of a portrait. Later, Korda said of this photograph, "I remember it as if it were today … seeing him framed in the viewfinder, with that expression. I am still startled by the impact … it shakes me so powerfully".
During the rally, Korda took pictures of Cuban dignitaries and famous French
existentialist
Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and value ...
philosophers
Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and litera ...
and
Simone de Beauvoir
Simone Lucie Ernestine Marie Bertrand de Beauvoir (, ; ; 9 January 1908 – 14 April 1986) was a French existentialist philosopher, writer, social theorist, and feminist activist. Though she did not consider herself a philosopher, and even th ...
, both admirers of Guevara at the time. Included in the film roll were shots of all the speakers and two pictures of Che's brief appearance. The classic picture appears on frame number 40 shot horizontally.
The first photograph had Guevara framed alone between the silhouette of
Jorge Masetti
Jorge José Ricardo Masetti Blanco (born 31 May 1929; disappeared 21 April 1964), also known as "Commander Segundo", was an Argentinean journalist and guerrilla leader. Born in Avellaneda, Masetti entered the jungle at Salta and after 21 April 1 ...
and a palm tree; the second with someone's head appearing above his shoulder. The first picture, with the intruding material cropped out and the image rotated slightly, became Guevara's most famous portrait. The editor of ''Revolución'' where Korda worked, decided to use only his shots of Castro, Sartre, and de Beauvoir, while sending the Che shot back to Korda. Believing the image was powerful, Korda made a cropped version for himself, which he enlarged and hung on his wall next to a portrait of the Chilean poet
Pablo Neruda
Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto (12 July 1904 – 23 September 1973), better known by his pen name and, later, legal name Pablo Neruda (; ), was a Chilean poet-diplomat and politician who won the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature. Nerud ...
,Iconic Photo of Che Guevara Now Half a Century Old by the ''
Latin American Herald Tribune
The ''Latin American Herald Tribune'' (''LAHT'') is an online-only newspaper with headquarters in Caracas, Venezuela. It is aimed at English-reading people who want to be informed about Latin America. The publication identifies itself as the su ...
'', March 5, 2010 and also gave copies to some others as a gift. It was not until 1986 that José Figueroa, an established photographer in his own right who printed for Korda and was his unofficially "adopted" son, suggested they try printing the full frame version of the portrait. Korda continued to print both versions of the image up until his death.Introduction: Korda's Che Moves Out into the World by Trisha Ziff, January 2005
To take the photograph, Korda used a LeicaM2 with a 90 mm lens, loaded with
Kodak
The Eastman Kodak Company (referred to simply as Kodak ) is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in analogue photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorpor ...
Plus-X pan film. In speaking about the method, Korda remarked that "this photograph is not the product of knowledge or technique. It was really coincidence, pure luck."Alberto Korda at The Art History Archive by Brandi Leigh, November 2007
Alberto Korda
As a lifelong
communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
and supporter of the
Cuban Revolution
The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in cou ...
until his death,
Alberto Korda
Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez, better known as Alberto Korda or simply Korda (September 14, 1928 – May 25, 2001), was a Cuban photographer, remembered for his famous image ''Guerrillero Heroico'' of Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara.
...
claimed no payment for his picture. A modified version of the portrait through the decades was also reproduced on a range of different media, though Korda never asked for
royalties
A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset o ...
. Korda reasoned that Che's image represented his revolutionary ideals, and thus the more his picture spread the greater the chance Che's ideals would spread as well. Korda's refusal to seek royalties for the vast circulation of his photograph "helped it become the ultimate symbol of Marxist revolution and anti-imperialist struggle."
However, Korda did not want commercialization of the image in relation to products he believed Guevara would not support, especially alcohol. This belief was displayed for the first time in 2000, when in response to
Smirnoff
Smirnoff (; ) is a brand of vodka owned and produced by the British company Diageo. The Smirnoff brand began with a vodka distillery founded in Moscow by Pyotr Arsenievich Smirnov (1831–1898). It is distributed in 130 countries. Smirnoff produ ...
using Che's picture in a vodka commercial, Korda claimed his
moral rights
Moral rights are rights of creators of copyrighted works generally recognized in civil law jurisdictions and, to a lesser extent, in some common law jurisdictions.
The moral rights include the right of attribution, the right to have a work pu ...
(a form of
copyright law
A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
) and sued advertising agency Lowe Lintas and Rex Features, the company that supplied the photograph. Lintas and Rex claimed that the image was in the
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
. The final result was an out of court settlement for US$50,000 to Korda, which he donated to the Cuban healthcare system, stating "if Che was still alive, he would have done the same."
After the settlement, Korda reiterated that he was not against its propagation altogether, telling reporters:
Use in Cuba
Cuban historian Edmundo Desnoes has stated that "Che's image may be cast aside, bought and sold and deified, but it will form a part of the universal system of the revolutionary struggle, and can recover its original meaning at any moment." That meaning's origin harkens back to when Korda's photograph was first published on April 16, 1961, in the daily Cuban newspaper ''Revolución'', advertising a noon conference during which the main speaker was "Dr. Ernesto 'Che' Guevara". The conference was disrupted, however, when 1,300 CIA-supported counter-revolutionaries stormed the beaches of Cuba, in what became known as the failed
Bay of Pigs invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion (, sometimes called ''Invasión de Playa Girón'' or ''Batalla de Playa Girón'' after the Playa Girón) was a failed military landing operation on the southwestern coast of Cuba in 1961 by Cuban exiles, covertly fina ...
. The image was thus republished a second time advertising the newly convened conference on April 28, 1961. Because of this fact, it seems very likely that in the context of both of these publications, that Che could have seen the photograph that would later contribute to his iconic status.
The very first time Cubans on a large scale became familiar with the photograph, despite its earlier reproduction in ''Revolución'', was on hearing the news of Che's death. Upon the news of Che's execution, it was enlarged and draped on a banner down the five-story building of the Ministry of the Interior in the
Plaza de la Revolución
Plaza de la Revolución (), "Revolution Square", is a municipality (or borough) and a square in Havana, Cuba.
The municipality, one of the 15 forming the city, stretches from the square down to the sea at the Malecón and includes the Vedado d ...
in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
. This building where Che himself had formerly worked, served as a backdrop to Fidel's eulogy on October 18, 1967, publicly acknowledging the death of Che Guevara before a crowd of over a million mourners. José Gómez Fresquet, renowned Cuban poster maker and graphic artist, recalls how on hearing the news of Guevara's death, he immediately worked all night producing the poster to be used at the rally honoring him the next day. Korda had given Fresquet a copy of the portrait as a basis for the poster, which he created on red paper. This was the first privately produced ''Guerrillero Heroico'' to be created in Cuba. Since then the building has seen many versions of the image, and today a permanent steel outline, derived from the photograph, adorns the building.
International dissemination
Giangiacomo Feltrinelli
Passed out to the occasional friend and published in a few small Cuban publications, Che's image remained relatively unknown for 7 years. A print was sold or given to wealthy Italian publisher and intellectual
Giangiacomo Feltrinelli
Giangiacomo Feltrinelli (; 19 June 1926 – 14 March 1972) was an influential Italian publisher, businessman, and political activist who was active in the period between the Second World War and Italy's Years of Lead. He founded a vast library o ...
in 1967. Feltrinelli had just returned from Bolivia where he had hoped his fame would help in negotiating the release of French journalist and professor
Régis Debray
Jules Régis Debray (; born 2 September 1940) is a French philosopher, journalist, former government official and academic. He is known for his theorization of mediology, a critical theory of the long-term transmission of cultural meaning in hum ...
. Debray had been arrested in Bolivia in connection with guerrilla operations led by
Che Guevara
Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...
Feltrinelli's version of the image was used in October 1967 in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
, Italy, when spontaneous protests occurred in response to the news of Che's death. Italian photographer Giorgio Mondolfo later stated that "the first time I saw the picture by Alberto Korda, I was not even slightly interested in the author. I was only fifteen, and it was the picture that had drawn us – many for the first time – to gather in the streets, crying ''Che lives!''"
''Paris Match''
''Guerrillero Heroico'' also appeared in the August 1967 issue of ''
Paris Match
''Paris Match'' () is a French-language weekly news magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features.
History and profile
A sports news magazine, ''Match l'intran'' (a play on ''L'Intransigeant' ...
''. Published only a few months before his eventual capture and execution, the issue featured a major article titled "Les Guerrilleros" by journalist Jean Lartéguy. Lartéguy wrote
At a time when Cuban revolutionaries want to create Vietnams all over the world, the Americans run the risk of finding their own
in Latin America."Che Guevara: Revolutionary & Icon", by Trisha Ziff, Abrams Image, 2006, pg 19
The article ended by asking "Where is Che Guevara?" The caption of the photograph read "The official photograph of Che Guevara; on his beret the star, the symbol of the Comandante." It is not known who provided the magazine with the image, and it was also not credited to Feltrinelli. However, with its wide circulation throughout Europe, and its status as an influential news journal, ''Paris Match'' could also be viewed as one of the original purveyors of the image.
de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...
government (but did not overthrow it), organizer "Danny The Red" utilized Fitzpatrick's rendition of Che during the protests. At this time, Che's image was picked up by the Dutch anarchist group "The Provos" in Amsterdam, who focused on triggering violent responses from authorities through non-violent means.
Jim Fitzpatrick
In 1967, Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick was also using Korda's image as a basis for creating his own stylized posters. Fitzpatrick claims he received a copy of the photograph from the Dutch anarchist group "the Provos", who produced a magazine bearing the group's name. Fitzpatrick remembers that Provo magazine claimed the image originally came to Europe via
Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and litera ...
. Fitzpatrick's source of the image, then, would not have been Feltrinelli.
To create the image Fitzpatrick made a paper negative on a piece of equipment called a grant. They were then printed in one color black and one color red, and he handpainted the star in yellow. Fitzpatrick "wanted the image to breed like rabbits" and hand printed thousands of images to give away to anyone for free in London, in addition to getting friends to pass them out while encouraging others to make their own versions. He printed about a hundred copies at a time to fulfill the demand of political groups in Ireland, France, and the Netherlands who began requesting the image. A batch was also sent to Spain, where they were seized by
Franco
Franco may refer to:
Name
* Franco (name)
* Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975
* Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître"
Prefix
* Franco, a prefix used when ref ...
's police.
Because of the high demand, Fitzpatrick formed a poster company called ''Two Bear Feet'' and produced a variety of posters in 1967 using the Korda image. All of them were created without copyright, because Fitzpatrick wanted them to be reproduced. One of these posters would be published in the satirical magazine ''
Private Eye
''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satire, satirical and current affairs (news format), current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely r ...
''. The best-known was printed on silver foil and was exhibited in an exhibition in London called "Viva Che" at the Arts Laboratory, curated by Peter Meyer. This show was originally to be held at the
Lisson Gallery
Lisson Gallery is a contemporary art gallery with locations in London and New York, founded by Nicholas Logsdail in 1967. The gallery represents over 50 artists such as Art & Language, Ryan Gander, Carmen Herrera, Richard Long, John Latham, Sol ...
in 1968 and illustrates how fast the image moved from protest into the realm of fine art.
Because of Fitzpatrick's desire for the photograph to reflect something of himself, he raised Che's eyes more and added his initial, an "F", on the shoulder. It was not until the 40th anniversary of Che's death that Fitzpatrick admitted to this fact stating "I’m a bit mischievous, so I never told anyone.""Artist reveals his guerrilla tactics with iconic image’s secret mark", by Web Studio Ireland, October 9, 2007 At this time Fitzpatrick said that "I love the picture and wherever I am in the world, if I see it, I take a photo of it. I always have a chuckle when I see that little 'F'. I know that it's mine." In November 2008, Fitzpatrick announced that he would be signing over the copyright of his Che image to the William Soler Pediatric Cardiology Hospital in Havana, Cuba. In announcing his reason for ensuring all future proceeds would go to the children's hospital, Fitzpatrick stated that "Cuba trains doctors and then sends them around the world ... I want their medical system to benefit." Additionally, Fitzpatrick publicized his desire to gift the original artwork to the archive run by Guevara's widow, Aleida March.
Ireland
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...
president
Gerry Adams
Gerard Adams ( ga, Gearóid Mac Ádhaimh; born 6 October 1948) is an Irish republican politician who was the president of Sinn Féin between 13 November 1983 and 10 February 2018, and served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Louth from 2011 to 2020 ...
is interviewed in the 2008 documentary ''Chevolution'' about the famous photograph. As he speaks, the film shows a montage of Che murals in
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
, with Adams remarking "I suppose people from my background were drawn to that image, because of what Che Guevara represented."Kenneth Haynes "Gerry Adams Featured in New Che Guevara Documentary" ''Irish Central'', September 8, 2009 To mark the 50th anniversary of Guevara's death the Irish postal service
An Post
(; literally 'The Post') is the state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland. An Post provides a "universal postal service" to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union. Services provided include letter post, p ...
issued a €1 stamp featuring Fitzpatrick's stylised version of the image. The initial print run of 122,000 sold out within days with An Post saying they experienced "unprecedented demand".
The United States and further influence
''Guerrillero Heroico'' made its American debut in 1968 on
New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October 2 ...
billboards, when the image appeared in painted form by Paul Davis, for a poster advertising the February issue of
Evergreen Review
''The Evergreen Review'' is a U.S.-based literary magazine. Its publisher is John Oakes and its editor-in-chief is Dale Peck. The ''Evergreen Review'' was founded by Barney Rosset, publisher of Grove Press. It existed in print from 1957 until 19 ...
.Trisha Ziff, "Che Guevara: Revolutionary & Icon", Abrams Image, 2006, p. 22 Paul Davis has stated that he was "inspired by Italian paintings of martyred saints and Christ", in his romanticised version of Che.
However, the fascination was not solely an American phenomenon. For instance, British journalist
Richard Gott
Richard Willoughby Gott (born 28 October 1938),Winchester College: A Register. Edited by P.S.W.K. McClure and R.P. Stevens, on behalf of the Wardens and Fellows of Winchester College. 7th edition, 2014. pp. 271 (Short Half 1952 list heading) & ...
who met with Che Guevara several times expressed a similar view, by stating how he was "struck by his magnetic physical attraction, comparable to the aura of a rock star". In Gott's opinion "almost everyone had the same impression, and journalists were particularly susceptible".Richard Gott "The story of the iconic image of Che Guevara" ''The Hindu'', June 5, 2006 ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' magazine, in an August 8, 1960, cover story after meeting with Guevara displayed this view, by remarking that Che wore "a smile of melancholy sweetness that many women find devastating".
Argentine
Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
journalist Julia Costenlos, recalls that in her view he was "blessed with a unique appeal, an incalculable enchantment that came completely naturally". Even under duress, ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' journalist Henry Brandon, who spoke with Guevara at the height of the
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...
, remarked that Che possessed a "genial charm" that "might have made
Charles Boyer
Charles Boyer (; 28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978) was a French-American actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found his success in American fi ...
envious".
In judging the enduring appeal of the image, Darrel Couturier, representative for Korda since 1997, has opined that it was "the image of a very dashing young man" and that in the "age of free love and flower power ... the time was ripe for a figure" or "image that could represent this great diversity in thinking and behavior the world over". According to Couturier, this "age of religious revolution", matched with Guevara's premature death, "elevated him to almost
martyrdom
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external ...
".
In art and culture
As pop artists took to the image with glee, it evolved into a popular and heavily commercialized icon that often strayed far from Che's hard-line
Marxist
Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
message. British pop artistSir Peter Blake has referred to ''Guerrillero Heroico'' as "one of the great icons of the 20th century".Sean O'Hagan "Just a Pretty Face?" ''The Observer'', July 11, 2004 When converted into a stark black cut-out, Korda's photograph became easy, cheap, and fast to copy using the favored material and method of the 1960s: lith film and screen painting. By the time of his death in 1967, Che was already "a legend, the romantic epitome of worldwide rebellion" and in the wake of his perceived martyrdom, Korda's photograph went viral.Robert W. Butler, "A look at Che Guevara through the Lens of his Iconic Image", ''
The Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.
According to the
V&A Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
, "the photograph enshrines Che as a mythic hero. Taken from below, the revolutionary leader with searching eyes and resolute expression becomes larger than life. A perspective that dominates the imagery of social realism, it bears an irresistible aura of authority, independence and defiance." The V&A Museum goes on to state that Korda's famous photograph first
deified
Apotheosis (, ), also called divinization or deification (), is the glorification of a subject to divine levels and, commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity. The term ha ...
Che and turned him into an icon of
radical chic
Radical chic is the fashionable practice of upper-class people associating with politically radical people and causes. Coined in the 1970 article "Radical Chic: That Party at Lenny's" by journalist Tom Wolfe, the term has become widely used in l ...
. Its story, a complex mesh of conflicting narratives, gave ''Guerrillero Heroico'' a life of its own, an enduring fascination independent of Che himself. The Italian magazine ''Skime'' evokes even more praise, decreeing it "absolutely the most famous of history" while proclaiming that it "captures beauty and youth, courage and generosity, aesthetic and moral virtues of a person who possessed all the characteristics necessary to be converted into a symbol of an
epoch
In chronology and periodization, an epoch or reference epoch is an instant in time chosen as the origin of a particular calendar era. The "epoch" serves as a reference point from which time is measured.
The moment of epoch is usually decided by ...
like ours, lacking in historic legends and mythic incarnations." Journalist
Richard Gott
Richard Willoughby Gott (born 28 October 1938),Winchester College: A Register. Edited by P.S.W.K. McClure and R.P. Stevens, on behalf of the Wardens and Fellows of Winchester College. 7th edition, 2014. pp. 271 (Short Half 1952 list heading) & ...
has also remarked that "the red star in Che's beret was up there with '
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partners ...
'." Jonathan Green, director of the UCR photography museum, has remarked that "pop art is a rejection of traditional figuration, rhetoric, and rendition. Its egalitarian anti-art stance was the perfect corollary for Che's anti-establishment attitude."
Exhibits
* 1968, the Arts Laboratory in London held an exhibition on the photograph entitled "Viva Che".
* 1990, the Jour Agnes B Gallery in Paris, France, presented an exhibit of Korda's image titled "Che Guevara: A 21st Century Man".
* 1998, the
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
Fowler Museum of Cultural History
The Fowler Museum at UCLA, commonly known as The Fowler, and formerly Museum of Cultural History and Fowler Museum of Cultural History, is a museum on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) which explores art and material ...
in Los Angeles, California, featured an exhibition compiled by David Kunzle titled "Che Guevara: Icon, Myth and Message".
* 2003, the Centre for Contemporary Art in
Rethymnon
Rethymno ( el, Ρέθυμνο, , also ''Rethimno'', ''Rethymnon'', ''Réthymnon'', and ''Rhíthymnos'') is a city in Greece on the island of Crete. It is the capital of Rethymno regional unit, and has a population of more than 30,000 inhabitants ( ...
, Greece, presented an exhibit titled "Che Guevara's Death".
* 2004, the Centro Nacional de la Música, in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, held an exhibition titled "Che Guevara by the photographers of the Cuban Revolution".
* 2005, the
UCR/California Museum of Photography
The UCR/California Museum of Photography (CMP) is an off-campus institution and department of the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at the University of California, Riverside, California, USA. The collections of UCR/CMP form the la ...
featured an exhibition titled "Revolution and Commerce: The Legacy of Korda's Portrait of Che Guevara".
* 2005, the
International Center of Photography
The International Center of Photography (ICP), at 79 Essex Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York City, consists of a museum for photography and visual culture and a school offering an array of educational courses and programming. ...
in New York City held an exhibition titled "¡Che! Revolution and Commerce".
* 2006, the
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
in London hosted an exhibition titled "Che Guevara: Revolutionary and Icon".
* 2007, the La Triennale in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
, Italy, featured an exhibition titled "Che Guevara Rebel and Icon: The Legacy of Korda's Portrait".
* 2007, the
Tropenmuseum
The Tropenmuseum ( en, Museum of the Tropics) is an ethnographic museum located in Amsterdam, Netherlands, founded in 1864.
One of the largest museums in Amsterdam, the museum accommodates eight permanent exhibitions and an ongoing series of tem ...
in Amsterdam held a special exhibition about the photograph titled "Che! A Commercial Revolution".
* 2007, the
Frost Art Museum
The Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum (Frost Art Museum) is an art museum located in the Modesto A. Maidique campus of Florida International University (FIU) in Miami, Florida. It was founded in 1977 as 'The Art Museum at Florida Internatio ...
at
Florida International University
Florida International University (FIU) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest uni ...
in Miami, Florida, presented an exhibition featuring the photograph.
* 2008, the WestLicht Gallery in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
, Austria, offered an exhibition on ''Guerrillero Heróico'' in relation to the "development of a mythos".
* 2008, the Fototeca center in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
, Cuba, held an exhibition titled "Korda, Known. Unknown."
* 2008, the
Santralistanbul
The SantralIstanbul ( tr, Santralİstanbul), opened in 2007, is an arts and cultural complex located at the upper end of Golden Horn in the Eyüp district of Istanbul, Turkey. The center, consisting of an energy museum, an amphitheater, concer ...
in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, hosted the exhibit "Narrative of a Portrait: Korda's Che from Revolution to Icon".Korda’s Che from Revolution to Icon' Travels to İstanbul" ''
Today's Zaman
''Today's Zaman'' (Zaman is Turkish for 'time' or 'age') was an English-language daily newspaper based in Turkey. Established on 17 January 2007, it was the English-language edition of the Turkish daily '' Zaman.'' ''Today's Zaman'' included dom ...
'', November 10, 2008
* 2009, the Dom Nashchokina Gallery in Moscow, hosted the exhibition "Che: Hasta Siempre! Meet You in the Eternity" from June 18 to September 20, 2009.
* 2010, the
International Center of Photography
The International Center of Photography (ICP), at 79 Essex Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York City, consists of a museum for photography and visual culture and a school offering an array of educational courses and programming. ...
in New York City, hosted the exhibition "Cuba in Revolution" from November 11 to January 9, 2011 – which featured several versions of the image.
Posters and covers
* In 1967 Polish artist Roman Cieslewicz designed a poster with the words "Che Si" (translation: 'Yes Che') emblazoned over his face as eyes and nose. This was later featured on the October 1967 cover of the French art magazine ''Opus International''.
* In 1968, Elena Serrano produced a widely distributed poster titled "Day of the Heroic Guerrilla", which shows telescoping images of Korda's photograph expanding to cover the entire red map of South America.
* The 1968 February issue of ''
Evergreen Review
''The Evergreen Review'' is a U.S.-based literary magazine. Its publisher is John Oakes and its editor-in-chief is Dale Peck. The ''Evergreen Review'' was founded by Barney Rosset, publisher of Grove Press. It existed in print from 1957 until 19 ...
'', featured Che's image in a painted form by Paul Davis.
* The September 1969 issue of ''
Tricontinental Magazine
''Tricontinental'' is a leftist quarterly magazine founded after the Tricontinental Conference 1966. The magazine is the official publication of the Organization of Solidarity with the People of Asia, Africa and Latin America (OSPAAAL) which also p ...
'' featured a conjoined image of Korda's Che with
Ho Chi Minh
(: ; born ; 19 May 1890 – 2 September 1969), commonly known as ('Uncle Hồ'), also known as ('President Hồ'), (' Old father of the people') and by other aliases, was a Vietnamese revolutionary and statesman. He served as Prime ...
.
* During a 1969 student strike at
Berkeley
Berkeley most often refers to:
*Berkeley, California, a city in the United States
**University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California
* George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher
Berkeley may also refer ...
, a poster was produced and distributed with a cartoon bubble coming from Che's mouth possessing the words: "Shut it down!"
* In 1970, the
Art Workers' Coalition The Art Workers' Coalition (AWC) was an open coalition of artists, filmmakers, writers, critics, and museum staff that formed in New York City in January 1969. Its principal aim was to pressure the city's museums – notably the Museum of Modern Art ...
produced a widely distributed
anti-Vietnam War
Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War (before) or anti-Vietnam War movement (present) began with demonstrations in 1965 against the escalating role of the United States in the Vietnam War and grew into a broad social move ...
poster featuring an outline of Che on a yellow background, with his famous quotation: "Let me say at the risk of appearing ridiculous, that the true revolutionary is guided by great feelings of love."
* The
Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerfor ...
artwork for their 1993 single, "
Bombtrack
"Bombtrack" is a song by American rock band Rage Against the Machine. It is the opening track on their self-titled debut album. Like most of Rage Against the Machine's songs, the song's lyrics discuss social inequality, proclaiming that "landlo ...
" features a mirrored version of the iconic two-tone portrait by Jim Fitzpatrick.
* The September 16, 1996 edition of ''
Der Spiegel
''Der Spiegel'' (, lit. ''"The Mirror"'') is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of 695,100 copies, it was the largest such publication in Europe in 2011. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...
'' magazine titled: "The Myth of Che Guevara", featured Che's image adorned with a
halo
Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to:
* Halo (optical phenomenon)
* Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head
HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Video games
* ''Halo'' (franch ...
of moving bullets.
* A computerized rendition of ''Guerrillero Heroico'' appeared on the cover of the March 1–7, 2006 issue of ''
Metro
Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to:
Geography
* Metro (city), a city in Indonesia
* A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center
Public transport
* Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
'', above the title "The Blog Revolution".
* In 2003,
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
's album ''
American Life
''American Life'' is the ninth studio album by American singer Madonna. It was released on April 21, 2003, by Maverick and Warner Bros. Records. The album, produced by the singer and Mirwais Ahmadzaï, features references to many parts of Ame ...
'' featured the singer redoing ''Guerrillero Heroico''.
* The December 2008 issue of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
Argentina'' features ''Guerrillero Heroico'' on the cover.
Commodity
The Che image has been cited as an example of the merging of politics and marketing and the power that images hold over our society. Trisha Ziff, the curator of a 2004 touring exhibition on the
iconography
Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...
of Che has stated that "Che Guevara has become a brand. And the brand's logo is the image, which represents change. It has become the icon of the outside thinker, at whatever level, whether it is anti-war, pro-green or anti-globalisation. Its presence, everywhere from Belfast to Soweto, or from walls in the Palestinian territories to Parisian boutiques, makes it an image that is out of control. It has become a corporation, an empire, at this point."Stephanie Holmes "Che: The icon and the ad" ''BBC News'', October 5, 2007.
Alberto Korda's photograph has received wide distribution and modification, appearing on countless numbers of T-shirts, posters, consumer products, protest banners, personal tattoos, and in many other formats. It has morphed into an iconic
countercultural
A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...
symbol for a new generation of youth. The image is now worn on the chests of a diverse group of individuals, from those who truly support the ideals that Che Guevara lived for, to those expressing a more generalized anti-authoritarian stance.
Iconography
Journalist Michael Casey, in his 2009 book ''Che's Afterlife: The Legacy of an Image'', notes how the universal image can be found "in all corners of the world" and theorizes that it arrived as a symbol of rebellion during an era when the world was aching for change. In defining Korda's photograph as a "brand" and "quintessential post-modern icon", Casey notes that somehow the photograph encapsulates "hope and beauty", which causes people around the globe to "invest their dreams in it". While David Kunzle, author of the book ''Che Guevara: Icon, Myth, and Message'', has opined that "The
beret
A beret ( or ; ; eu, txapela, ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap, usually of woven, hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre.
Mass production of berets began in 19th century France and Spain, and the beret remains ...
functions subliminally as a flattened
halo
Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to:
* Halo (optical phenomenon)
* Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head
HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Video games
* ''Halo'' (franch ...
."
Trisha Ziff, the curator of ''Che! Revolution and Commerce'' describes ''Guerrillero Heroico'' as a "statuesque image taken from below", which "derives from a visual language of mythologized heroes harking back to an era of socialist realism" while referencing "a classical Christ-like demeanor".
Jon Lee Anderson
Jon Lee Anderson (born January 15, 1957) is an American biographer, author, investigative reporter, war correspondent, and staff writer for ''The New Yorker'', reporting from war zones such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Uganda, Palestine, El Salvador, Ir ...
, author of ''Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life'', in the photograph Che appears "as the ultimate revolutionary icon" with "his eyes staring boldly into the future" and "his expression a virile embodiment of outrage at social injustice".
The stylized image of Che Guevara, adapted from Korda's photograph, is commonly accompanied by several different symbols that add context to its inherent suggested meaning. The most common of these are the
red star
A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a symbol that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the hammer and sickle, but is also used as a purely socialist symbol in the 21st century. I ...
,
hammer and sickle
The hammer and sickle (Unicode: "☭") zh, s=锤子和镰刀, p=Chuízi hé liándāo or zh, s=镰刀锤子, p=Liándāo chuízi, labels=no is a symbol meant to represent proletarian solidarity, a union between agricultural and industri ...
,
Cuban flag
The national flag of Cuba ( es, link=yes, Bandera de Cuba) consists of five alternating stripes (three blue and two white) and a red equilateral triangle at the hoist, within which is a white five-pointed star. It was designed in 1849 and offici ...
, and the saying in Spanish (translation: "Towards Victory, Always"). The multi-meaning phrase became the sign off for Che Guevara's numerous letters and speeches as a revolutionary, and represent the commitment to both never give up on the eventual triumph of a
Marxist
Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
world revolution
World revolution is the Marxist concept of overthrowing capitalism in all countries through the conscious revolutionary action of the organized working class. For theorists, these revolutions will not necessarily occur simultaneously, but whe ...
, and the belief that this victory once it occurs, will be
eternal
Eternal(s) or The Eternal may refer to:
* Eternity, an infinite amount of time, or a timeless state
* Immortality or eternal life
* God, the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith in monotheism
Comics, film and television
* ...
. As a result, has become a de facto
slogan
A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan, political slogan, political, Advertising slogan, commercial, religious, and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the publi ...
or
catchphrase
A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
, used as a
motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...
by those who continue to support and/or admire Che Guevara's life and/or ideals.
Copyright status
For decades the famous image was unhindered by
international copyright agreements
While no creative work is automatically protected worldwide, there are international treaties which provide protection automatically for all creative works as soon as they are fixed in a medium. There are two primary international copyright agreem ...
, because Cuba was not a signatory to the
Berne Convention
The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention, was an international assembly held in 1886 in the Swiss city of Bern by ten European countries with the goal to agree on a set of leg ...
.
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
described it as a "
bourgeois
The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...
concept" which meant that artists and advertisers were free to use Korda's work as they pleased.Che: The Birthday of a Revolutionary Brand by Michael J. Casey, ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', March 5, 2010 Legally, Cuban Law no. 156 signed on September 28, 1994, to amend part of Law no. 14 of the 1977 Copyright Act (Article 47), states that pictures taken in Cuba fall into the public domain worldwide, 25 years after their first use. As for the United States, since the image was first published in Cuba without compliance with U.S.
copyright formalities
Copyright formalities are legal (generally statutory) requirements needed to obtain a copyright in a particular jurisdiction. Common copyright formalities include copyright registration, copyright renewal, copyright notice, and copyright deposi ...
and used in Cuba before February 20, 1972 (more than 25 years before Cuba signed the Berne Convention in 1997) it is also generally, although not universally, considered to be in the
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
.
Despite conflicting claims about whether or not the image could have copyright established, Korda's children have sought to control commercial use of the image from
defamation
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
. Korda's daughter Diana Diaz pursued a 2003 lawsuit in France against a Paris-based press rights group
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...
, for using the Che photograph in a poster campaign decrying Cuba as "the world's largest jail", aimed at dissuading French tourists from vacationing in Cuba after the jailing of 29 dissident journalists.Reuters, Che's Family Plans to Fight Use of Famed Photo ", ''Common Dreams'', August 29, 2005 In suing the group for 1.14 million
euros
The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . T ...
, Diaz's lawyer, Randy Yaloz remarked that "we are going after everyone who betrays the moral rights of my client".Korda Daughter Sues RSF Over Image of Che, by ''Cuba News'', March 2004
Moral rights
Moral rights are rights of creators of copyrighted works generally recognized in civil law jurisdictions and, to a lesser extent, in some common law jurisdictions.
The moral rights include the right of attribution, the right to have a work pu ...
are a separate component of
copyright law
A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
that are not recognized in the U.S., but are recognized in some other countries, notably in France where Diaz filed the lawsuit.''Intellectual Property Rights: Critical Concepts in Law'', Volume 2, by D. Vaver, Taylor & Francis, 2006, , pg 273–280 Moral rights aim to protect the integrity of a work from defamation, distortion, slander, or offensive mutilation, even if the originator no longer owns the copyright. However, Reporters Without Borders stopped using the image before any legal judgment was rendered.
Ariana Hernández-Reguant addressed the image's copyright status in 2004 in her article ''Copyrighting Che: Art and Authorship under Cuban Late Socialism''. She expressed a skeptical view towards Korda's heirs being able to establish ownership over the image, noting in reference to the lawsuits involving the image, "There was never any official ruling on whether the depiction constituted a violation of copyright." The author goes on to state that: "Korda took the picture while working for a state-run newspaper, his actual property rights would be questionable under both Cuban and international law."
In 2007, law student Sarah Levy also addressed the potential legal status of the image in Cuba. It was her ultimate contention that "in Cuba the copyright protection in Korda's Guevara photograph would have already expired, and despite the claims of ownership from Korda's heirs, the State would now hold any rights associated with the photograph."''"A Copyright Revolution: Protecting the Famous Photograph of Che Guevara"'', by Sarah Levy, 13 Law and Business Review of the Americas, Am. 687. Summer of 2007. In regards to the more commonly disseminated stylized version of the photograph, lawyers say it will be an uphill struggle to deter non-photographic use of such a widely reproduced image, other than in countries like Italy where laws protect image rights.
Guevara's heirs also believe they have legal justification to prevent the image's "exploitation" or
slander
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
. Guevara's Cuban widow Aleida March stated in 2005 that "We have a plan to deal with the misuse. We can't attack everyone with lances like Don Quixote, but we can try to maintain the ethics of Guevara's legacy." In reference to this pronouncement, Guevara's daughter
Aleida Guevara
Aleida Guevara March ( Guevara; born 24 November 1960) is the eldest daughter of four children born to Ernesto "Che" Guevara and his second wife, Aleida March.
She is a doctor of medicine, based at the ''William Soler Children's Hospital'' in H ...
told
Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was estab ...
, "It will be costly and difficult because each country has different laws, but a limit has to be drawn."
Further reading and viewing
:
Books
* ''Alberto Korda: A Revolutionary Lens'', by Diana Diaz & Mark Sanders, Steidl, 2007,
* ''Che's Afterlife: The Legacy of an Image'', by Michael Casey, Vintage Books USA, 2009,
* ''Che Guevara: Revolutionary and Icon'', by Trisha Ziff, Abrams Image, 2006,
* ''Che: Images of a Revolutionary'', by Oscar Sola, Pluto Press, 2000,
* ''Che: The Photobiography of Che Guevara'', Thunder's Mouth Press, 1998,
* ''Cuba by Korda'', by Christophe Loviny & Alberto Korda, Ocean Press (AU), 2006,
* ''Self Portrait Che Guevara'', by Ernesto Guevara & Victor Casaus, Ocean Press (AU), 2004,
Chevolution
''Chevolution'' is a 2008 documentary film which examines the history and legacy of the photo ''Guerrillero Heroico'' taken by famous Cuban photographer Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez. This image has thrived for the decades since Che Guevara's death an ...
'', 2008, Produced by Trisha Ziff & Directed by Luis Lopez, Red Envelope Entertainment.
* ''Personal Che'', 2008, Directed by Adriana Mariño and Douglas Duarte.Official Website of "Personal Che" directed by Adriana Mariño & Douglas Duarte