AIGA Portland presents a FREE lecture in partnership with PNCA. RSVP today!
*Please note: This lecture is a separate event, and is happening at a different date and location from our exhibition.

Cuban Ephemera: Exploring Aesthetics of Cuban Design

A curatorial collaboration by Sam Hopple, Martha Lewis and Beverly Walton

The United States and Cuba have a complicated history. With Trump now in office, the diplomatic relations and so-called embargo with Cuba remain ambiguous. However, the perceptions of cultural communities and their ongoing battle to be seen, still exist.

Though Obama re-established diplomatic ties with Cuba,"el bloque" or blockade, remains in effect. Its lasting consequences of isolation have created flawed perspectives of the Cuban community. These biases remain deep seeded in our sociopolitical climate — a concoction of mistrust and mystery.

We welcome designer Michele Hollands and Idania del Rio (from Cuba!) to engage in an open dialogue about their work, culture, and country. Our aim is to encourage a greater understanding of both the Cuban-American as well as the Cubano creative community. How do art and design play a role in our current political acrimony?

Hollands and del Rio create posters to promote Cuban local events, films, exhibitions, and live music. Their work addresses the state, politics, and ideologies of Cuba, all while displaying a rich palette of vibrancy. Join us for a discussion with our guest designers about their creative process, inspiration and how they continue to pave the way for entrepreneurs in Cuba. 

Beverly Walton

Beverly Walton is an art collector here in Portland, Oregon. She owns and operates Red Ink, a website featuring Cuban graphic design. For the last 26 years, she has traveled back and forth to Cuba, where she has exhibited and sold Cuban posters in various US venues. She continues to collect and create connections between the graphic design communities in Cuba and the United States.

Michele Hollands

Michele lives and works in Havana as a designer, art director and professor. She graduated from ISDI (Instituto Superior de Desiño) in 2002 and is an Art Director of the cultural magazine La Gaceta de Cuba”. She has taught for several years at ISDI and at ISA (The Superior Institute of Art). Her work has been exhibited in and outside the country, and reviewed by national and international publications.

Idania del Rio

Idania del Rio is a designer, illustrator and entrepreneur living in Havana, Cuba. She is the co-founder and Creative Director of Clandestina, a design store-studio-workshop in Old Havana. Her posters and illustrations have been exhibited in Germany, Brasil, Perú, Mexico, USA and France.

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