Los Carpinteros, Los Carpinteros Cuban Art Photograph Tuneles Populares Silver Gelatin Photo, 1999

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Los Carpinteros (Cuban, 1992-present). Silver gelatin print photograph, large format. From the series "Tuneles Populares" (The People's Tunnels) 1999 Edition … Read more Los Carpinteros (Cuban, 1992-present). Silver gelatin print photograph, large format. From the series "Tuneles Populares" (The People's Tunnels) 1999 Edition 1/5 Provenance: Bliss Fine Art Services, New York (with label affixed to the verso) This is probably nad signed verso but has not been examin ed out of frame and does not bear a signature on recto. Dimensions: height: 26 in x width: 38 1/2 in. Framed; height: 32 in x width: 44 in x depth: 1 1/2 in. "Tuneles Populares" (The People's Tunnels) During the 1980´s, in part as a reaction to the Republican administration of Ronald Reagan, the Cuban government proclaimed “La Guerra de todo el pueblo” (the war of the whole people). As part of this national defense strategy, it ordained that the people should build tunnels throughout the country for evacuation of the population in the event of a war. Even though there was not a real declaration of war against Cuba, this strategy created a psychological disposition toward war. These spaces have never been used for evacuation and remain anachronistic structures in the center of cities. The photo series Tuneles Populares (The people´s tunnels), 1999, consist of ten large-scale photographs that document this very particular Project in Cuban history, taken by Los Carpinteros in 1999. The tunnels were the biggest construction project realized in Cuba in that decade, and they changed the appearance of the urban and architectonic environment in a drastic way. They also affected individual living space by transforming public life into “life in trenches”, facing a time of imaginary yet very present war. The unused tunnels remain as interventions into societal fabric, not only creating a sense of community in and through war but also developing very specific “faces” and “personalities”. Los Carpinteros: Handwork - Constructing the World. Edited by Gudrun Ankele and Daniela Zyman Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary. Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, Köln. 2010. p. 318 Los Carpinteros are currently represented by Sean Kelly Gallery in New York, Galeria Fortes Vilaça in Sao Paulo, Ivorypress Art and Books in Madrid, Galerie Peter Kilchmann in Zürich, and Galería Habana in Havana. Los Carpinteros was a Cuban artist collective founded in 1991, comprising Marco Castillo, Dagoberto Rodríguez, and, initially, Alexandre Arrechea, who left the group in 2003. In 1994 they decided "to renounce the notion of individual authorship and refer back to an older guild tradition of artisans and skilled laborers” in an attempt to emphasize their belief that art always, to some extent, involves collaboration.Known for their innovative blend of art, architecture, and design, the collective explored themes of functionality, politics, and humor through sculptures, installations, and drawings. Their work often combined the meticulous craftsmanship of vintage carpentry with conceptual commentary on social and cultural issues, creating pieces that are simultaneously utilitarian and symbolic. Los Carpinteros’ projects, such as their large-scale installations and furniture-inspired sculptures, challenged traditional boundaries between art and design while reflecting on the intersection of Cuban history and contemporary global issues. The collective officially disbanded in 2018, but their legacy endures as a pivotal force in contemporary art, celebrated in exhibitions worldwide. Marco Antonio Castillo Valdés (Cuba, 1971-) Graduate from the Superior Art Institute of Havana (ISA), 1995 Dagoberto Rodríguez Sánchez (Cuba, 1969-) Graduate from the Superior Art Institute of Havana (ISA), 1994 Both Valdes and Sanchez were born in Cuba and live and work between Havana and Madrid. They have exhibited in Cuba, Europe and North America, and have received a number of awards. In their work the artists incorporate aspects of architecture, design and sculpture to create installations and drawings that “negotiate the space between the functional and the nonfunctional", where they derive their “inspiration from the physical world” and express their interest in the intersection of art and society in a humorous manner. Los Carpinteros create a response to places, spaces and objects, how they have been conceived, built, used and abandoned. Los Carpinteros - Clavos Torcidos Between personal exposures are those made in the 90s in the ' "Centro de Arte 23 y 12" Cuba. They have been exhibited at "The New Museum of Contemporary Art" and the "Contemporary Arts Center" in Cincinnati, Ohio; "Grant Selwyn Fine Arts" in Los Angeles, CA; at the International Contemporary Art Fair ARCO'98 in Madrid; and Art Basel Miami where for the 2012 edition of the fair they built the "Güiro Art Bar". They held their first solo exhibition in Asia, 'Heterotopias', at Edouard Malingue Gallery in 2013. They were included in numerous shows at MoMA NY: New Perspectives in Latin American Art, 1930– 2006 with historical and contemporary Latin American artists, including Joaquín Torres-García, Alejandro Otero, Hélio Oiticica, Lygia Clark, Lygia Pape, Carmen Herrera, Geraldo de Barros, Leo Matiz, Willys de Castro, León Ferrari, Gego, Gerd Leufert, Mira Schendel, Waltercio Caldas, Anna Maria Maiolino, Victor Grippo, Guillermo Kuitca, Arturo Herrera, Gabriel Orozco, Carlos Garaicoa, and Santiago Cucullu. MoMA at El Museo: Latin American and Caribbean Art,The Museum of Modern Art with Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, Alexandre Arrechea, Marco Castillo, David Alfaro Siqueiros, Ana Mendieta, Fernando Botero, Antonio Berni, Frida Kahlo, Wifredo Lam, León Ferrari, Gego, Marisol, Cildo Meireles, Vik Muniz, and Doris Salcedo. Los Carpinteros have had many solo exhibitions including at the Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid, the Kunstmuseum in Thun and the Faena Art Center in Buenos Aires. Los Carpinteros works are included in the following permanent collections: Centre Pompidou, Paris, France Pérez Art Museum Miami, Florida Guggenheim museum, NYC Museum of Modern Art, New York Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California Tate Modern, London Galeria Fortes Vilaça, São Paulo, Brazil Daros Foundation, Farber Collection of Contemporary Cuban Art, Hirshhorn Museum, the MoMA, Thyssen-Bornemisza in Vienna, Austria Museo de Bellas Artes, Havana Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid Museo Extremeño e Iberoamericano de Arte Contemporáneo, Badajoz, Spain See less