René de Jesus Peña Gonzalez (Born in 1957 in Havana) is a Cuban artist specializing in

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

, and exposed his pictures in different exhibitions in

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 ...

(

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.

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and in the US (

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

René Peña graduated from the

University of Havana The University of Havana or (UH, ''Universidad de La Habana'') is a university located in the Vedado district of Havana, the capital of the Republic of Cuba. Founded on January 5, 1728, the university is the oldest in Cuba, and one of the first ...

with a specialization in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. He took his first pictures with his family camera at the age of eight years but has never had any formal training. His work focuses on the duality between human inability to escape institutionalization and human desire for individualism. His photography is characterized by stark contrasts, between black and white, subject and background, subject and object. His need for contrast is also reflected in his place of residence: Peña currently inhabits the Cerro neighbourhood of Cuba which is home to a mostly poor African-Caribbean population, despite having been an enclave of Havana's richest families in the 19th century. Although sometimes compared to

Robert Mapplethorpe Robert Michael Mapplethorpe (; November 4, 1946 – March 9, 1989) was an American photographer, best known for his black-and-white photographs. His work featured an array of subjects, including celebrity portraits, male and female nudes, self-p ...

, he cites as his influences photographers Eduardo Moñoz Ordoqui and Marta Maria Perez Bravo (both of whom focus on black-and-white photography). As of late, René Peña has been experimenting with colour photos, as well as with digital cameras.

Solo exhibitions

*René Peña: Fotografías, Fototeca de Cuba,

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.

(2002) *René Peña: Introspectiva, Casa de los Tiros, Granada,

(2002) *Manmade Materials, Suyama Space,

. *Black + White in Color (w/ Cirenaica Moreira). Couturier Gallery.

Los Angeles, USA Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. (2012)

Collective exhibitions

*Cuba 1960-2000 Sogno e realtà, Fondazione Italiana per la Fotografia,

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

(2002) *Latin American Artist Photographers from the de Lehigh University Art Gallery Collection,

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer and was originally affiliated with the Epis ...

(2001) *Passionately Cuban, University Art Museum, State University of New York at Albany,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

(2001). *

Queloides ''Queloides'' is an ongoing cultural and curatorial project in Cuban art that seeks to highlight the persistence of racist stereotypes and ideas of racial difference in Cuban society and culture. Initiated in 1997 by artist Alexis Esquivel and by ...

: Race and Racism in Cuban Contemporary Art, Havana-Pittsburgh-New York City-Cambridge, Ma. (2010-2012) * Drapetomania: Grupo Antillano and the Art of Afro-Cuba (2013) * First national Festival of Video Art at

The Ludwig Foundation of Cuba The Ludwig Foundation of Cuba (LFC) is a non-governmental, non-profit institution located in Havana, Cuba, created with the mission of protecting and promoting Cuban artists in Cuba and internationally. History After seeing an exhibition of Cu ...

(2001)

References

www.havana-cultura.com

External links

www.artfacts.netwww.artnet.comwww.soycubano.comwww.worthpoint.comwww.panamericanart.comwww.rene-pena.com
1957 births Cuban photographers Living people {{cuba-artist-stub