This is a bit more of the pieces I saw at the Ceramics Museum in Havana. This next group begins to give a feel for the lack of "things" in Cuba. Many ceramic artists have little or no access to the basic chemicals (not the lack of glazes on these pieces). As a result, many of them use oxides and firing methods to color their work.

A future post will deal with an artist I met at her studio in Camaguey, a city located in central Cuba. But, for now, let's get to the art, shall we?

This piece was a combination of a mural and a few three-dimensional pieces. 

I lived in Mexico for many years. A potter named Ken Edwards used iguanas as his trademark. This artist does the same thing, but takes it a little farther. I enjoy the whimsy of these three-dimensional creatures stalking the small, two-dimensional, more primitive bird painted onto the surface of the vessel.                

A lttle bit of glaze to accentate the octopus, then a matte surface as background. I'm beginning to wish I had taken notes regarding each photographed piece.     

This was quite a large piece, with a sgrafitto'ed design on it.  It has a wonderful rustic feel!                                                       

Damn the embargo! I could have bought this artist's work at a gallery in Havana la Vieja. But I was afraid it would be confiscated. You're allowed to bring in "art", but nothing of a touristic nature. Who decides? The customs agent. I didn't want to take a chance.                              

This is a large piece. I know it's difficult to tell the scale. I would say it was about 3 feet tall. It's also a vessel. The thumb is removeable so you can "use" the hand as a container. I think I looked at this piece a good long time because of the wonderful detailing the artist put into his figurative design.                                                   

And yet some more wonderful pieces from the Ceramics Museum in Havana.

 A wonderful altered and cut piece.

 As a birder, I love this clever piece with two owls sitting atop it.

 A closer look at the two owls. Texture is sometimes a key element in design.

 The next two photos are "sets". I always find it interesting how an artist can create different pieces that have the same voice.

Let's see some more from the Ceramics Museum in Havana, shall we?

Over the years I've come to appreciate how surface treatment/decoration can elevate even the simplest piece.

Don't you love how the decoration works to elongate the above bottle shape?

And how about the modernization of a dragon theme?

This "book" was wonderful. I marveled at how thin the artist was able to get the "pages".

More to come in a bit.........

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.