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Artwork Description

Hamlet Lavastida, born in Havana, Cuba, in 1983, has become an influential figure among younger Latin American artists. A staunch advocate for free expression, Lavastida played a pivotal role in organizing the 27-N democratic movement, a collective of independent artists and writers in Cuba that in 2021 led the largest protests in Cuban cultural history, challenging the government's rhetoric and propaganda. After a residency in Berlin in September 2021, Lavastida faced adversity upon his return to Havana, where he was arrested and imprisoned for three months. Following intense interrogations, he was deported to the European Union, and since January 2022, he has lived and worked in forced exile in Berlin. Despite these challenges, Lavastida's art has continued to evolve, focusing on integrating art within the realms of history, ideology, and collective memory. Known for his intricate paper cutouts created with X-Acto knives, his work has been internationally acclaimed and exhibited in cities such as Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, Chicago, Miami, Mexico City, and New York. Lavastida's work addresses not only political repression but also symbolic and iconographic repression within the field of visual arts and Cuban culture. In his series "Vida profiláctica," for example, he re-appropriates texts, images, and symbols to create a dialogue about political and ideological repression and propaganda in Cuba.