Just got back from a ten day trip to Cuba. It was a trip concentrated on birding -- but I was fortunate enough to visit an artist who lives in Camaguey, as well as the Ceramics Museum in Havana. So, over the next few weeks I'll be slowly posting photos of some of the work I saw.

Let's start with wall hangings and murals. This first one is a tiled fish at the Ceramics Museum in Old Havana (Habana la Vieja).

I love the whimsy and textures in the piece.

This next one is a mural hanging at the entrance to the Hotel Camaguey, in Camaguey. There is a feminist theme running through a good deal of Cuban art. This mural exemplifies that:

Another, more abstract mural was on the patio of a gallery in Habana la Vieja. Again, I loved it's play of textures and colors:

It's quite a large piece, so I was only able to capture a small part of the details (see below the patio shot).





















Another small piece was, again, at the Ceramics Museum and, again, I was intrigued with the textures used in its tiles:

Finally, an impressive work of the Revolution located on the second lobby (second floor) of the Havana Libre Hotel -- formerly the Hilton, opened at the wrong time (just before the Revolution closed it down).

Its title, if I recall correctly, is "Carro de la Revolucion" (The Revolutionary Car) by ceramist Amelia Peláez. It contains 525 pieces of clay tile with metal inserts and is fashioned after the style of Picasso.