Cuban
Cuban or Cubans may refer to:
Related to Cuba
* of or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean
* Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent
** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof
* Cuban Americ ...
Neo-expressionist
Neo-expressionism is a style of Late modernism, late modernist or early-Postmodern art, postmodern painting and sculpture that emerged in the late 1970s. Neo-expressionists were sometimes called ''Transavantgarde'', ''Junge Wilde'' or ''Neue Wild ...
painter and visual artist. He has been active internationally in the arts since the 1980s and is featured in the permanent collections of several prominent fine art institutions including the
Museum of Latin American Art
The Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) was founded by Dr. Robert Gumbiner in 1996 in Long Beach, California, United States, and serves the greater Los Angeles area. MOLAA is the only museum in the United States dedicated to modern and contemp ...
and
Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale
The NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale is an art museum in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Originating in 1958 as the Fort Lauderdale Art Center, the museum is now located in an modernist building designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes. The current building wa ...
.
Life and career
Luís Domingo Marín Rodriguez was born in
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. He spent his early life in the Cuban capital during a period of great social and political unrest resulting from the
Cuban Revolution
The Cuban Revolution () was the military and political movement that overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, who had ruled Cuba from 1952 to 1959. The revolution began after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état, in which Batista overthrew ...
. Marín showed an early interest and inclination toward visual and performance art. After initially training to be an actor, he was later accepted into and graduated from the prestigious Academia San Alejandro, Cuba's leading art academy, and also studied History of Art in the
University of Havana
The University of Havana (UH; ) is a public university located in the Vedado district of Havana, the capital of Cuba. Founded on 5 January 1728, the university is the oldest in Cuba, and one of the first to be founded in the Americas. Originall ...
. He began exhibiting his art in 1983 when he participated in a group exhibition titled "Salon Plaza ‘83," at the Galería Casa de la Cultura Plaza in Havana. In 1986 he held his first solo exhibition, titled "Expressions," at Havana's Domingo Revenet Gallery. The following year in 1987 Marín left Cuba for
Madrid, Spain
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
where he lived and worked for two years.
He then relocated to the United States in 1989, where he joined the extensive
Cuban exile
A Cuban exile is a person who has been exiled from Cuba. Many Cuban exiles have various differing experiences as emigrants depending on when they emigrated from Cuba, and why they emigrated.
The exile of Cubans has been a dominating factor in C ...
community in Miami and became a regarded artist among the younger generation of Cuban exile artists. Since relocating to the United States, Marín would gain critical recognition and continue to exhibit in high-profile American art markets as well as internationally in both individual and group exhibitions. Notable examples from his first three years in the US include his exhibitions at the Inter-American Gallery of
Miami-Dade College
Miami Dade College (MDC) is a public college located in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1959, MDC operates eight campuses and numerous outreach centers throughout Miami-Dade County. It is the largest institution in the Florida Colle ...
(1991) and the Cuban Museum of Art and Culture (1992). He would also participate in several fine art auctions, such as the November 2001 Lights for Hope benefit auction by Alpha International Galleries in support of Camillus House, the September 2009 Liga Contra el Cancer (League Against Cancer) Auction, as well as in Sotheby's New York.
Exhibitions
Since beginning to exhibit his artwork in 1983, Marín has participated in over 50 exhibitions and has exhibited in several prominent international art markets including
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
,
Miami
Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
,
Coral Gables
Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida and is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248.
Cora ...
,
Coconut Grove
Coconut Grove, also known colloquially as "The Grove", is an affluent and the oldest continuously inhabited neighborhoods of Miami, neighborhood of Miami in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The neighborhood is roughly bounded by North Prospect Driv ...
, and
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. His work has also been exhibited extensively across Latin America, including
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
,
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
,
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
,
Ecuador
Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
,
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
,
Panama
Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
,
Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
, and
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
*1987: Instituto de Cooperación Iberoamericano,
Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
Santa Cruz de la Sierra (; ), commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the largest city in Bolivia and the capital of the Santa Cruz department.
Situated on the Pirai River in the eastern Tropical Lowlands of Bolivia, the Santa Cruz de la Sierra Metrop ...
*1990: Uniques Gallery,
Panama City, Panama
Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province ...
*1991: Picasso's Gallery, Coral Gables FL
*1992: Javier Lumbreras Fine Art Gallery, Coral Gables FL
*1993: Municipal Museum of Modern Art,
Cuenca, Ecuador
Cuenca, officially Santa Ana de los Ríos de Cuenca, is an Ecuadorian city, head of the Cuenca Canton, canton of the same name and capital of the Azuay Province, province of Azuay, as well as its largest and most populated city. It is crossed by t ...
*1995: Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano,
Lima, Peru
Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
*1996: "Como el Destello del Cobre: Recent works by Luis Marín," The Americas Collection, Coral Gables FL
*1997: "Voices, Visions, Views," Ralleigh Gallery, Boca Raton FL
*1998: Sun Trust International Bank, Miami FL
*1999: "Obra," Ars Atelier,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
*2000: Galería Villa Riso,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the sixth-most-populous city in the Americas.
Founded in 1565 by the Portuguese, the city wa ...
*2002: Academia de Ciencias,
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...
*2004: "Expresion", Galería Mi Tierra,
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...
*2004: "Las Huellas de mi Ciudad," Havana, Cuba
*2005: "Recent Work," Hotel Gran Melia, Cancun, Mexico
*2005: IV Cumbres Jefes de Estado Estado & Gobierno de Países de Caribe (IV Summit of Heads of State & Government of Caribbean Countries),
Atlapa Convention Centre
Atlapa Convention Centre (Spanish: Centro de Convenciones de Atlapa) is located in Panama City, Panama. The convention centre was opened in June 1980. Run by the Panamanian tourist authority, it contains 19 meeting rooms, some of which are capable ...
, Panama City, Panama
*2005:
University of Miami
The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...
, Coral Gables FL
*2006: Recent Work, Commodore Gallery of Art & Design, Coconut Grove, FL
*2007 Alberto Romeu Studio, Miami
*2007: University of Miami, Coral Gables FL
Selected group exhibitions
Marín's collective exhibitions include:
*1983: Salon Plaza ‘83, Galería Casa de la Cultura Plaza,
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
*1986: II Bienal de de la Habana, Galería Domingo Revenet, Havana, Cuba
*1987: American School Cooperative,
Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
Santa Cruz de la Sierra (; ), commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the largest city in Bolivia and the capital of the Santa Cruz department.
Situated on the Pirai River in the eastern Tropical Lowlands of Bolivia, the Santa Cruz de la Sierra Metrop ...
*1988: Cuban Center,
Madrid, Spain
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
*1991: "Abstractions,"
Miami-Dade Community College
Miami Dade College (MDC) is a public college located in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1959, MDC operates eight campuses and numerous outreach centers throughout Miami-Dade County. It is the largest institution in the Florida Colleg ...
, Inter-American Gallery of the Wolfson Campus, Miami FL
*1992: "Acupuntura," Cuban Museum of Art and Culture, Miami FL
*1993: "Son," Design Center of America, Dania Beach, FL
*1994: "African Influence on Latin American Art," St. Thomas University, Miami FL
*1994: "Cuban Presence," Vista Gallery,
New York City, NY
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harb ...
*1994: "Afro-Mythology in Works," Barbara Greene Gallery, Coconut Grove, FL
*1996: "Paper Visions," VI Biennial, Housatonic Museum of Art,
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the List of cities in New England by population, fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Loc ...
State University of New York
The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
*1997: "Breaking Barriers,"
Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale
The NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale is an art museum in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Originating in 1958 as the Fort Lauderdale Art Center, the museum is now located in an modernist building designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes. The current building wa ...
, Fort Lauderdale FL
*2002: "The Salon of Cuban Art Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Cuban Independence," SONO Art Gallery, New York City
*2002: El Espacio, Salon Pequeño Formato,
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...
*2003: Exposición Casa del Médico,
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...
*2004: VII Salón de la Plástica Cubano-Mexicano Subasta de Arte Latinoamericano, Fundación Arte para la Paz,
Mexico City, Mexico
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
*2005: Festival Cervantino Exposición Artes Plásticas APAP,
Panama City, Panama
Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province ...
*2007: Doral Arts Festival, Rotary Club of Doral, Doral FL
*2009: Exhibición de Grabado, Coral Gables FL
*2015: Habana 305 Gallery, Miami FL
Style
Luis Marín is considered a
Neo-Expressionist
Neo-expressionism is a style of Late modernism, late modernist or early-Postmodern art, postmodern painting and sculpture that emerged in the late 1970s. Neo-expressionists were sometimes called ''Transavantgarde'', ''Junge Wilde'' or ''Neue Wild ...
. Cuban art historian Giulio V. Blanc describes Marín's work as having "an appreciation and understanding of light," being "influenced by Caribbean aesthetics," and "Explores the contradictions between abstract and representative art." New York-based Cuban art critic Gustav Valdes stated that Marín "Uses traditional and religious references" and "paints the souls and essence of things in their pure states."
Marín's works explore the visual stimulus of the spectator and represent a constant search of emotions and sensations through aggressive lines, forms, and bold color applications. His Cuban culture is a recurring theme throughout his career. Marín described much his work, particularly during the 1990s, as being influenced by
Afro-Cuban culture
Afro-Cubans () or Black Cubans are Cubans of full or partial sub-Saharan African ancestry. The term ''Afro-Cuban'' can also refer to historical or cultural elements in Cuba associated with this community, and the combining of native African an ...
including: myths, social dynamics, eroticism, and syncretism. As such it was defined by symbols and vivid color usage.
Marín tends to reject political themes and narratives in his art. Explaining this, as well as how his work has evolved since leaving Cuba, Marín told
El Nuevo Herald
''El Nuevo Herald'' is a newspaper published daily in Spanish in Southeast Florida, United States. Its headquarters is in Doral. ''El Nuevo Heralds sister paper is the ''Miami Herald'', also produced by the McClatchy Company.
About ''el Nuevo ...
"I have always avoided direct political lectures in my work, I live in a certain context, but I am not interested in permeating my pieces with politics. ..in Cuba my pieces played more with irony and sarcasm, but today my work is more open, much more complex." He often leaves his works undated, sometimes untitled, and signs his works "Marín."
Recognition and collections
Over the course of his nearly 40-year career, Marín has become regarded internationally as a respected Cuban artist of the late 20th and early 21st century. As such, has exhibited his work alongside other renown Cuban artists including Hugo Consuegra and
Baruj Salinas
Baruj Salinas (July 6, 1935 – August 18, 2024) was a Cuban-American contemporary visual artist and architect. He is recognized as a central figure in the establishment of the modern Latin American art market in South Florida.
Background
Salina ...
. Marín has also been supported by leading Cuban art critics and scholars.
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...
associate, historian and curator Giulio V. Blanc compared him to
Willem de Kooning
Willem de Kooning ( , ; April 24, 1904 – March 19, 1997) was a Dutch-American abstract expressionist artist. Born in Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, he moved to the United States in 1926, becoming a US citizen in 1962. In 1943, he married pa ...
. Additionally, Paris-based Cuban writer, film director, and former editor of ''Cine Cubano'' magazine
Zoé Valdés
Zoé Valdés (born May 2, 1959 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban novelist, poet, scriptwriter, film director and blogger. She studied at the ''Instituto Superior Pedagógico Enrique José Varona'', but did not graduate. From 1984 to 1988, she worked fo ...
described Marín's work as "crystalline poetry, influenced by the greats."
He has also been discussed in several books of Cuban art and Latin American culture, including ''Memoria: Cuban Art of the 20th Century'', ''Breaking Barriers'', ''Queering Creole Spiritual Traditions'', and ''The Dictionary of Art'' (1996). His career has also been covered by Latin American art media, such as ''
El Nuevo Herald
''El Nuevo Herald'' is a newspaper published daily in Spanish in Southeast Florida, United States. Its headquarters is in Doral. ''El Nuevo Heralds sister paper is the ''Miami Herald'', also produced by the McClatchy Company.
About ''el Nuevo ...
Art Nexus
''ArtNexus'' is the leading magazine to cover the contemporary art of Latin America. From its documentation center in Bogota, the magazine covers visual art and architecture. By publishing in both Spanish and English, the magazine fulfilled its go ...
'', ''Latin American Art'' Magazine. The catalog for his 2004 Cuban individual exhibition ''Las Huellas de mi Ciudad'', his first in Cuba since leaving in 1987, is included within The
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
Digital Archive of Latin American and Caribbean Ephemera.
Luis Marín's work is included in the permanent collection of several museums, embassies, universities, and banks. Museums that hold his works include the
Museum of Latin American Art
The Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) was founded by Dr. Robert Gumbiner in 1996 in Long Beach, California, United States, and serves the greater Los Angeles area. MOLAA is the only museum in the United States dedicated to modern and contemp ...
, the
Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale
The NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale is an art museum in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Originating in 1958 as the Fort Lauderdale Art Center, the museum is now located in an modernist building designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes. The current building wa ...
, the Municipal Museum of Modern Art in Cuenca, Ecuador el Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano in Lima, Peru, and the
Housatonic Museum of Art
The Housatonic Museum of Art is a museum at Housatonic Community College in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The museum's collection is displayed throughout the college campus and in the Burt Chernow Galleries, which also hosts visiting exhibitions.
C ...
in Connecticut. His art is also featured in several educational institutions, such as
Antioch University
Antioch University is a private university with multiple campuses in the United States and online programs. It is the continuation of Antioch College, which was founded in 1852. Antioch College's first president was politician, abolitionist, and ...
, and the Academy of Sciences of the Dominican Republic. Marín's artwork is also held in the Cuban Embassy in Santo Domingo, the Consulate of Cuba in Panama City, Banvivienda Bank in Panama City, and the historic Villa Riso in Rio de Janeiro.