Navigating the Waves: Contemporary Cuban Photography September 29, 2024–March 16, 2025
Alberto Korda, Heroic Guerrilla (Guerillero heroico), 1960, printed 1995, gelatin silver print, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, museum purchase funded by Dan and Mary Solomon. © Estate Alberto Korda
Osvaldo Salas, Five Points of Fidel (Cinco puntos de Fidel), 1982, gelatin silver print, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, gift of the estate of Esther Parada. © 1982 Osvaldo Salas
Navigating the Waves: Contemporary Cuban Photography traces the evolution of photography in Cuba over nearly five decades, from the 1960s to early 2000s.
The exhibition looks at contemporary Cuban photography from its role in promoting the Cuban Revolution after Fidel Castro’s 1959 takeover of the Batista government to engaging in social and political critique following the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. Over the subsequent years, Cuban photographers created powerful personal expressions by exploring individual identity, the body and spirit, Afro-Cuban heritage, and the margins of society, all while navigating the changing prescriptions and proscriptions of official cultural policy.
Showcasing approximately 100 images, Navigating the Waves: Contemporary Cuban Photography celebrates the acquisition and promised gift to the MFAH of some 300 photographs from Chicago-based collectors Madeleine and Harvey Plonsker.
► Publication
The illustrated exhibition catalogue is available through the MFA Shop (713.639.7360) and the Museum’s Hirsch Library (713.639.7325).
Navigating the Waves: Contemporary Cuban Photography / September 29, 2024–March 16, 2025
“Navigating the Waves: Contemporary Cuban Photography” is organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
Major support is provided by:
Madeleine and Harvey Plonsker
Additional generous support is provided by:
Mary and Bernardino Arocha
Dr. Patricia J. Eifel
Linda and George Kelly