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A trip report by René Grohnert
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Coming to Havana for the first time, one is caught between cliché and reality. The weather and the friendliness of the people gives you an instant vacation feeling, but the other side of the coin will soon become apparent too: A mixture between decay and poverty - at least for european eyes - alternating from block to block with an easygoing joy of life. Havana is a beaming city with big problems, but also big hopes. Only a few posters can be seen in the streets, and only in small format, except maybe in some central locations where they advertise exhibitions, plays and movies. The large billboards for political propaganda are a special case, they dominate the urban landscape on all important intersections. There are three main themes: The glory of the party and the state, calls to save electricity and water, and finally statements asserting that Cuba will not be defeated by the embargo. Enjoy the pictures!
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Inspite of the decay, the magic of the city persists. The state uses some of the money from the booming tourist industry for restauration.
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All of downtown Havana is supposed to look like that some day. Will it ever be "The Pearl Of The Caribbean" again ?
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Pictures like on a postcard, but amazingly true.
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Big cruisers from the 50s and 60s immediately catch your eye.
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They have nothing to do with nostalgia however, but merely reflect the fact that it is almost
impossible for privat owners to get at any other kind of car.
Fascinating, at least for us. |
This poster made in the spring of 2002 also evokes memories of the 1960s.
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Billboards with political propaganda are often seen on big streets and intersections.
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The "Centro Cultural Cinematografico" is the first address for a poster fan. They have exhibitions, an
information center, and a library with an astonishing selection.
It is located at: Cinemateca de Cuba, Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematograficos (ICAIC); Calle 23 no. 1155, La Habana 4, Cuba tel.: + 537 / 34719, fax: +537 / 333078, email: cinemateca@icaic.inf.cu |
A really spectacular poster room awaits the visitor at the "Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematograficos (ICAIC)". It is not very large, but covered from floor to ceiling with a very impressive review of cuban poster art. You feel instantly at home.
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A view of the exhibition „Muestra Homenaje a Munoz Bachs (1937-2001)", in memory of Eduardo Munoz Bachs,
one of the foremost cuban poster artists. |
The exhibition also shows numerous original designs for the posters that give some insight into how Bachs worked.
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The title page 2/1998 of the german magazine PlakatJournal, designed by Munoz Bachs and Eladio Rivadulla, two of Cuba's top graphic designers.
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At ICAIC we, Johanna and René Grohnert, met Alicia Garcia (right), the author of many publications on cuban posters, and had a lively discussion with her on posters in general and in particular.
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The first and only catalogue which includes pre-revolutionary cuban posters. Many pictures give an idea of the
creative splendors of the past.
Cinemateca de Cuba, Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematograficos (Hrsg.), La Otra Imagen del Cine Cubano, edited by Sara Vega und Alicia Garcia, Havana 1997 |
An illustration from "La Otra Imagen del Cine Cubano": Movie poster from 1915 on the War of Independence 1895 - 1898.
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In an interesting project in 1999, young cuban artists were asked to design new posters for old movies,
and put them side by side with contemporary works, a very exciting comparison.
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Cinemateca de Cuba, Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematograficos (Hrsg.), Ayer y Hoy. Carteles de Cine Cubano, edited by Sara Vega und Alicia Garcia, Havana 1999
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René Grohnert is an art historian and the former editor of PlakatJournal (1994 - 1998), and has published many catalogues and articles on posters. This is his second travel report for Rene Wanner's Poster Page, after Are there any posters in New York ? in July 2001.