There is no dearth of creativity in Havana and graffiti artists are at the forefront of its everchanging landscape, albeit deterioriating. Art created on walls then sometimes appropraited to other mediums, such as paper and canvas, has transformed unnoticable, crumbling buildings and neighborhoods into giant public art galleries. By foot or by car - or my favorite, motorcycle - one can explore some of the capital’s best contemporary street art in a single day.
Graffiti in Havana can either be authorized or unauthorized by Cuban officials. For example, the Havana Art Biennial, one of the most important cultural events in the city, has contributed to establishing graffiti as a recognized and appreciated art. And in the context and curtorial scope of graffiiti art, arrangements have been made with local authorities and government funds to create large size pieces that demand use of scaffolds and protection equipment. On the other hand, politically charged work - or unauthorized work - usually appears in smaller projects that take less than a day to create. Smaller and faster created works can be more controversial at times and even destroyed by Cuban officials.
The word ephemeral can be used to describe graffiti art in Havana. Much of the work on display today can be disappear tomorrow. Surfaces can be subject to change due to construction work underway to repair decaying buildings or simply disassifaction by Cuban officials.
It's not simple to determine the artist(s) who created the works. Some works are anonymous for artistic or security reasons. Further, over the years, international graffiti artists has undoubtedly played an important role in promoting this art form across Havana, so it’s common to find artists world-wide cyrptically working alongside Cuban artists. Most works have no signature to inform viewers of their creators.
Howevever, established and courageous local artists like Yulier P, who sign their own work, can be easily recognized across Havana. I first discovered his work in 2017 in Central Havana on a morning run. Some of his pieces are cleverly integrated into their surroundings and context and some are politically charged. Nevertheless, he is one of the most important contemporary Latin artists currently at play. (Follow more about him on our instagram posts.)
Cuban graffiti art is extremely diverse, and I have enjoyed learning more about this genre over the past eight years. Although Cuba has had its struggles, and artists can have a hard time accesssing decent materials to create art, it never seems to impact the quality of cutting edge art coming out of that funky little island.
