The Ludwig Foundation of Cuba (LFC) is a non-governmental, non-profit institution located 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 ...
, created with the mission of protecting and promoting Cuban artists in Cuba and internationally.
History
After seeing an exhibition of Cuban Art in
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
, Germany, the art patrons and collectors Peter and Irene Ludwig began to interest themselves in contemporary Cuban art. They made many visits to Cuba and formed an important collection of Cuban art, including artists such as Belkis Ayón Manso, José Braulio Bedia Valdés,
Los Carpinteros ''Los Carpinteros'' is a Cuban artist collective founded in Havana in 1992 by Marco Antonio Castillo Valdes, Dagoberto Rodriguez Sanchez, and Alexandre Arrechea (who left the group in 2003). In 1994 they decided "to renounce the notion of individu ...
, Antonio Eligio Fernández,
Kcho
KCHO (sometimes spelled "K'cho"), born Alexis Leiva Machado on the Isla de la Juventud, Isle of Pines (1970), is a contemporary Cuban artist. He first attracted international attention by winning the grand prize at South Korea's Gwangju Biennale ...
and Marta Mariá Pérez Bravo. This couple of world-renowned European private collectors, develop the idea to create a Ludwig Museum in Havana, with an annual support of their ''Peter and Irene Ludwig Foundation'' located in Aachen. This German
Foundation
Foundation may refer to:
* Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization
** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S.
** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...
has links with more than twenty public museums based in Europe and Asia. However the creation of such a Project became impossible at the time, so they decided that a foundation with the mission of protecting and promoting Cuban artists in Cuba and abroad would be the idea. Thus, Ludwig's commitment and cooperation allowed the new foundation, the first in South America, to respond to the enormous economic difficulties of the
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
, which had previously caused the emigration of artists and the weakening of cultural institutions.
Created in 1995 as an autonomous, non-governmental and non-profit public entity, the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba is today an important center that helps protect, preserve and promote the work of contemporary Cuban artists in and outside of Cuba. It is administered by the American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba (AFLFC), and is directed by its current president Helmo Hernández.
Exhibitions and events
Cuban artists have been able to forge significant connections with their counterparts throughout the world thanks to the Foundation's exhibitions and cultural exchanges. Although the institution's initial focus was on the visual arts, it quickly started experimenting with the performing arts. From architecture, dance performances to mobile app development and from theatrical readings to graphic design, the Foundation works to educate, promote and protect the work of Cuba's emerging artists. They organize exhibitions at their headquarters as well as in other museums, as was the case of the Gerardo Rueda exhibition at the San Francisco Convent in Havana in 1999. Among the artists exhibited at the Foundation we find María Elena González, José Manuel Fors, Charly Nijensohn, Esterio Segura Mora, Grupo ABTV,
Keith Anthony Morrison
Keith Anthony Morrison, Commander of Distinction (C.D.), born May 20, 1942),"Resume" Keith Anthony Morrison. is a , Alberto Sarrain and
Juan Carlos Alom
Juan Carlos Alom (born December 1964 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban photographer. Alom is a photographer, documentary and experimental filmmaker. His artistic career started in the 1990s in Havana.
In 2023, Alom was the Mellon Artist in Residence at ...
, who collaborated in the large visual event : “''Uno de cada clase''” in 1995. In May 2022 the Foundation showed the exhibition Vest + Menté with the recent work on paper and screen by the Swiss-Cuban artist
Daniel Garbade
Daniel Garbade (born 1957) is a Swiss painter, illustrator, art director, property master, and publisher. Born in Switzerland from Swiss-Cuban origins, Garbade is the grand-nephew of Adrien Lachenal, great-grandchild of Cuban sculptor Fernando Hey ...
, curated by Nuria Delgado and Alejandro Baro.
International artists such as Glenda León, René Peña,
Juan Carlos Alom
Juan Carlos Alom (born December 1964 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban photographer. Alom is a photographer, documentary and experimental filmmaker. His artistic career started in the 1990s in Havana.
In 2023, Alom was the Mellon Artist in Residence at ...
and Lázaro Saavedra participated in the First National Festival of
Video Art
Video art is an art form which relies on using video technology as a visual and audio medium. Video art emerged during the late 1960s as new consumer video technology such as video tape recorders became available outside corporate broadcasting ...