State restrictions in Cuba have turned independent filmmaking into a challenge Miguel Coyula and Lynn Cruz show that where there’s a will uses clandestine recordings of Cruz and others in encounters with authorities inside Cuba or when asking evasive hospital staff for information about her father’s sudden decline in health Instead of relying on video or explanatory interviews Coyula lets the riveting audio tell the story plus music ranging from Cuban classical composer Ignacio Cervantes to the punk rock band Porno Para Ricardo It’s a documentary created at great risk for both Coyula who also directed the dystopian fiction film Corazón Azul Cruz is a deeply inspiring presence as she fights for her rights from minute to minute After its world premiere at IDFA, Chronicles of the Absurd was awarded the Best Film in the Envision Competition I spoke to Coyula and Cruz earlier in their first interview about the film I began to think that you must have an audio recorder running a lot of the time in your life MIGUEL COYULA: We do it when we sense that there is an upcoming situation D: What was the starting point for turning your recordings into a documentary MC: I did a web series with some of the audio There are two ways of doing things in Cuba Some people hide whatever troubles or tragedies fall upon them and think that it will fade away But we have always said the best way is to be transparent about everything that happens to us and so we released the audio of Javier Caso the photographer [who is interrogated by Cuban agents] it’s going to be good or bad if we do this LC: In Cuba we have this black market Nobody can survive without this black market when we were doing a screening in a private gallery We knew that we were in this strange situation because [the audience would be] artists and also activists The police or the state security will be there and what can we do if we don’t have a witness or we don’t have protection?  D: At what point did you feel as if you had enough material for a feature film?  MC: After we finished Corazón Azul, a friend of mine told me it would be interesting if you put this [audio] together as some kind of Cuban chronicles I felt it could be an interesting challenge because it’s apparently an intrinsically anti-cinematic idea: still pictures and sound It was a challenge to see if I could hold the interest of an audience with that format It is a format that was born out of necessity because in Cuba if you point a camera at someone in a society where people are living with two faces all of the time or they will take away the camera if they call an agent So I thought it was a good way of doing an x-ray of the society when they don’t know they are being recorded.  are acting under state pressure which makes them say things that are absurd all of the episodes are absurd in one way or another So I felt it could be like a Kafkaesque structure when Lynn gets fired from the acting agency but within 30 days we’re going to fire you again because we didn’t notify you.” So we released that audio you’re back again.” But now they wrote that she had a “passive” status which means she was out of the country and that’s why she couldn’t work and nobody else called her for auditioning again.  All of these strange behaviors are very much [part] of the Cuban society in the last 60 years Lynn and I were talking about it: I wish I didn’t have to make the film and she always said that she wish she didn’t have to participate.  D: It sounds like independent filmmaking in Cuba now is not exactly what we think of as independent filmmaking.  independent filmmaking before 2019 was in a legal limbo but after 2019 they created Decree 373 which legalizes independent filmmaking and the content has to be within the liberties allowed by the Cuban Revolution I can put it on paper and then I can do what I want.” But we’ve seen in the last five years that it wasn’t the case because then they get in trouble and then it’s on paper that they have a contract LC: And most of the filmmakers have left the country in the last three years D: You traveled with the fiction film Corazón Azul to a number of festivals How did that affect your decision to travel with Chronicles of the Absurd there’s something about it that lets you [do it] I don’t know how they will react to this film once we go back because nobody knew we were making this film but because Cuba is such a small cultural community To me making films is the reason I wake up every morning The only thing I can have control of is making films The news about the film was online one month ago [when IDFA announced premieres in October] Orwa’s words at the press conference were like a shelter because many times they don’t really strike at a moment like this but a little later I also felt like I didn’t know what was coming next.  MC: It’s the first time we see it on a big screen [here] I wanted to have this black void and only when there is a spoken word sometimes the intensity of the spoken words is enhanced by the size of the letters and the layout of the structure And I thought having this black space makes you imagine the location and the actions I use only very limited animation. So it’s a film about language in that sense I wish you could see it in Spanish because the agents who interrogate Javier Caso are very inarticulate I definitely felt that they were kind of swaggering And another thing is that you cannot see the faces and you cannot see the locations there was a room full of people.   MC: And [you don’t see] when Javier Caso arrived [at his interrogation] they asked him to surrender his cell phone but he had strapped another one under his shirt because they say we are the fifth-best police in the world But we heard that afterward they were doing thorough searches of some journalists after we released the audio of the interrogations D: Why did you choose to use paintings as avatars for people speaking in the movie I didn’t want to have to resort to interviews to explain what happened but I wanted to have the facts as much as possible And I couldn’t find pictures of many of these bureaucrats and agents So I animated the paintings because Antonia Eiriz is fascinating to me She did really touch the fiber of Cuban society and she stopped painting when they told her that her paintings were damaging the revolution and it wasn’t until 1993 that she started painting again when she emigrated to Miami She lived only for two more years but she did a lot of work in those two years and exactly in the same style she left in 1968.  What went into the sequence about Lynn’s father in the hospital LC: It was pretty hard for me because in my mind I was trying to save my dad and it’s impossible to get justice in this situation Then I felt finally that I can get justice because this truth is [being brought] into the light it’s because the population is dying because they have no choice and they are dying and nobody can say that Nobody can talk because they are persecuting what the population is posting on Facebook MC: Healthcare in Cuba for a long time was one of the biggest assets of the revolution D: I’ve heard that even sending the film’s DCP for the first time was complicated sending a DCP from Cuba using the Cuban internet is.. Neither Lynn nor I can teach at the film school So we went late at night after all the academic staff had left and nobody could recognize us The guard was a young guy who didn’t know us and we said that we were going to see this friend of ours And we did it and we were able to eat!  Nicolas Rapold is the host of the podcast The Last Thing I Saw a frequent contributor to numerous publications and former editor-in-chief of Film Comment He is editing a book of interviews with Frederick Wiseman © 2024 International Documentary Association Privacy Policy The aptly titled Cuban film Chronicles of the Absurd won a top prize in November at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) the world's largest documentary film festival The film begins with a quote by the writer Virgilio Piñera: "Had Kafka been Cuban he'd have been a non-fiction writer.” As an inside view of artists' interactions with an oppressive government the documentary will likely never be screened in its home country Directed by Miguel Coyula—known for Memories of Overdevelopment and Blue Heart—Chronicles comprises clandestine audio recorded on hidden cell phones by artists interrogated by state security officials at great personal risk The audio conversations are presented and transcribed on screen without any voiceover explanations or even much visual context “It's just the facts,” Coyula tells The Art Newspaper it's just the recordings of the events—the language You have to imagine all the locations and the actions in this dark void.” The transcribed words are often enlarged when the speaker is excited emphasised with colour in El Lissitzky-like fashion and accompanied by a portrait when the speaker is known When an official of the Cuban government speaks Coyula animates the late Expressionist painter Antonia Eiriz's (1929–1995) Goya-like grotesques the actress Lynn Cruz (whom he cast in Blue Heart) plays a pivotal role in Chronicles For any artist to practice their craft in Cuba they must belong to the designated government-run union for their art form—there are separate ones for filmmakers architects and musicians—otherwise their work is technically illegal Cruz had been represented by the state’s performing-arts union but was dropped in 2018 likely because of her outspoken criticism of the government in a regular column she wrote for the Havana Times Cruz decided to record her hearings and trials as a protective record of what transpired and because her dismissal meant she was unable to work in Cuba anymore Antonia Eiriz’s Una tribuna para la paz democrática (1968) Cruz’s contretemps are central to Chronicles: first over the work issue and again against the medical establishment when her father’s inferior hospital care during the Covid-19 pandemic leads to his death (she believes his care was compromised because of her own reputation) Cruz is also crucial to the brave recordings of Javier Caso a Cuban photographer based in Brooklyn who accompanied Coyula and Cruz on a shoot for Blue Heart Cuba’s ministry of immigration brought him in for questioning Although he turned his cell phone in to the authorities he had a second phone “strapped on his chest You can hear his heartbeat as he walks into the office,” Coyula says Perhaps being the older brother of the actress Ana de Armas protected Caso—a fact that officials were sure to mention in a particularly chilling interaction Coyula says that, as a result, there has always been a danger that he (and Cruz) would not be permitted to go back to Cuba. The couple were able to return after attending the IDFA were but questioned at length at the airport. Nevertheless, they choose to remain in Cuba rather than emigrate, as many other artists have done. Coyula, who lived in New York for ten years, says he cannot criticise the country from abroad and that it is important for him to live in his homeland. “To me, it’s not patriotic nationalism. It’s more a sensorial experience—a view of the ocean from the window of the apartment I was born in, the street, the Malecón, the smells,” he says. “Making films is my reason to live. I wake up every morning and I go to sleep knowing that at least I have control in making films.” the state has gone to great lengths to silence critical voices—but artists refuse to be silenced news3 March 2020Cuban artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara arrested on way to a LGBTQ+ censorship protestThe artist will face a summary trial in ten days while activists say the arrest amounts to "state terrorism" news5 July 2019Tania Bruguera fights censorship by launching investigative journalism project in CubaThe artist and activist, whose School of Integration runs at Manchester International Festival, will organise workshops and awards for new writers exposing censorship against artists on the islandFilmed clandestinely in Cuba director Miguel Coyula's movie received a Special Jury Award at the prestigious independent film festival BAFICI in Argentina By The 26th edition of the Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema (BAFICI) awarded the Jury's Special Prize in the Vanguard and Gender competition to the documentary Chronicles of the Absurd (2024) In his Facebook profile, Coyula shared part of the jury's argumentation which highlighted that the documentary "artistically narrates the downfall of the Cuban nation though it depends on one's perspective; for while it details the filth of the Castro regime in its processes of repression it is also true that it emphasizes humanity's resistance to such a perverse hegemony and that is the contrasting message: a message of hope and repair." Filmed with hidden recordings, the 77-minute audiovisual shows the reality of independent artists in Cuba, subjected to state control and harassment The film recounts the experience of Coyula and actress Lynn Cruz starting in 2011 when they began an artistic and personal collaboration that led them to document multiple unsettling interactions both artists have had with a wide range of institutions and individuals Chronicles of the Absurd tells this story primarily through audio recordings The synopsis of the Cuban Audiovisual Digital Encyclopedia (ENDAC) emphasizes that “in Cuba artists must be recognized by state institutions to have income and rights Existing as an independent means facing control and intimidation.” displayed in graphic text that highlights the dynamics of the conversations and paintings by the Cuban artist Antonia Eiriz The austere form reflects the hardships faced by Cuban filmmakers whose freedom of expression is violated daily by a despotic system,” the text adds When analyzing the film, critic Álvaro Arroba noted: “There is an interrogation to which Ana de Armas's brother who secretly records the audio of the conversation with the police It is an exchange that encapsulates the idea of the title so well that chronicle of the absurd that becomes the heart of the film and which would not be as effective even if written down.” Arroba recalled that "Coyula and Lynn are on the island He reflected that the film "has a speed of 'networks' it offers a very eloquent snapshot of what we might call the 'besieged intellectuality' of Cuba Chronicles of the Absurd was showcased earlier this month at the 42nd Miami International Film Festival and in the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro during the 30th International Documentary Festival It’s All True Graduated from the School of Film and Television in San Antonio de los Baños Red Roaches (2003) - his first feature film - and Memories of Development (2010) conceived from the eponymous novel by Edmundo Desnoes whose previous Memories of Underdevelopment inspired the acclaimed film by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea in 1968 He also directed Nadie (2017), about the life of the poet Rafael Alcides, and Corazón Azul (2021) an alternative history depicting a Cuba where the experiment to create the “new man” to save Cuban socialism fails leading to the emergence of highly dangerous individuals who threaten to plunge society into chaos and violence In 2023, Coyula reported the case of a Cuban elderly man who was expelled from his home by his son and involuntarily admitted to a nursing home through a documentary that was also created using recordings of clandestine audio as the regime does not allow videos to be made in public institutions The twenty-sixth edition of BAFICI took place from April 1 to 13 It is regarded as one of the most important independent film festivals in Latin America The documentary "Crónicas del Absurdo" won the Special Jury Prize in the Avant-Garde and Gender competition at the Buenos Aires Independent Film Festival (BAFICI) This recognition highlights the film's ability to artistically portray the reality of repression in Cuba and its message of resistance and hope in the face of an oppressive regime The documentary focuses on state repression and control over independent artists in Cuba it showcases the challenges faced by filmmakers like Miguel Coyula and Lynn Cruz who document their Kafkaesque experiences with repressive institutions on the island Censorship in Cuba hinders creative freedom and limits thematic diversity in cinema The Assembly of Cuban Filmmakers condemns the systematic exclusion of works that criticize the regime and the financial obstacles reflecting an institutional fear of free ideas and a tendency to simplify reality through censorship Miguel Coyula is a Cuban filmmaker known for his critical stance toward the regime and his defense of artistic freedom He has directed films such as "Cucarachas rojas," "Nadie," and "Corazón Azul," which address social and political issues from an alternative perspective to the official discourse in Cuba A team of journalists committed to reporting on Cuban current affairs and topics of global interest we work to deliver truthful news and critical analysis we share a final interview with the acclaimed architect Architecture in Cuba was kidnapped by construction: that’s one of the ideas most often stated by prominent Cuban architect and urban planner Mario Coyula Cowley (Havana in which he identified the main conflicts facing Cuban architecture from January 1959 to the present Coyula took part in a variety of scenarios that made him one of the major critics of architecture and urbanism in the Greater Antilles In his career he served as Doctor of Technical Sciences and emeritus professor of the José Antonio Echevarría Higher Polytechnic Institute director of the Havana Architecture and Urbanism organization a member of the Group for the Integral Development of the Capital and first president of the Havana Monuments Commission He received the National Architecture Award and the National Award for Cultural Heritage for lifetime achievement Why did major investment in Havana cease after 1959 remember that most of the Revolution’s leaders were not from Havana but from the eastern part of the country where there was a kind of prejudice: seeing Havana as the beautiful woman who spends it all leaving nothing for the rest of the country Then the decision was made to develop the architecture in the rest of the country and this measure halted Havana’s development It was one of the few Latin American capitals to grow at a slower pace than the rest of the country The government’s idea was to develop the rest of the country by making investments in new jobs it’s one thing not to make new investments That’s stupid even from an economic point of view When I was a member of the Group for the Integral Development of the Capital a specialist suggested that it would cost a lot to repair Havana In response I asked if it was not logical to spend money to preserve a city with such a tremendous value That’s the mentality that we often do not have Eusebio Leal’s initial struggle to restore the Old Havana There were those who were for its demolition—they did not know how to address that problem they couldn’t do it: more than 70,000 people living there had nowhere else to stay That’s how the development of the Centro Histórico came under the direction of the City Historian’s Office That is one of historian Eusebio Leal’s achievements: he proved his theory It is something we should extend to the rest of the country If you see it as a burden on your shoulders What was the thinking behind the new construction in the rest of the country that was the phase when architecture was kidnapped by construction and therefore was no longer architecture The problem was to fulfill the goal and that’s all The funny thing is that beauty began to be rejected out of the supposed need to put up many good buildings we’re still thinking in terms of the crane slow and expensive technologies with investments in manufacturing but then we realize that they no longer work The last time we thought like that was early in 1959–1961 in the so-called Pastorita buildings in La Habana del Este When a building is not finished it remains halfway What alternatives could so-called cuentapropistas—the self-employed entrepreneurs—and the state and non-agricultural cooperatives use to give new life to Havana’s La Rampa The involvement of all these stakeholders is needed The problem is that we’re in a vicious cycle but there is still some prejudice around authorizing the private work of professionals in their own professions It’s crazy that an architect cannot have a private practice Who will ensure that these small cafes opened by individuals or the state will have well thought-out There is talk of reasserting urban control through the procedure of building permits But the building permit should be based on a project Where are the professionals to make those cafes I think they should re-introduce building permits What can a state enterprise do in the private sector State-owned enterprises are responsible for airports and major projects like the Mariel Terminal—not for private cafes nobody is in charge of the small projects that give shape to the city by being at street level what you see is what’s in front—and lamentably what people put there obscures the buildings’ facades and sheds that people put up to sell things Many architects want to join together in cooperatives but the Ministry of Construction disagrees—as if architecture in Cuba was the property of that ministry Why haven’t we seen the spread of the Talleres de Transformación Integral del Barrio (TTIB)—the Neighborhood Integral Transformation Workshops the vertical activities of different agencies was accepted only reluctantly but not by those who had to put it into effect They saw it as interference—meddling in their domain a portable machine to make construction blocks—one of the things local industries usually need to address a need at the neighborhood level The building officials in the town declared that the machine had to be for them In the workshops we supported small businesses such as an artisanal business in La Güinera where women made bags and wallets from hyacinth a water plant that has very good fibers for weaving Then the Provincial Directorate of Handicrafts came and said the workshop should be under their supervision They had the kind of mentality where what is not understood is frightening but very convenient for democracy working at the grassroots level against the vertical thinking that’s dictated from a Ministry on down These leaders never know what people really want They don’t ask the people who receive a product whether they like it or would prefer something else to guarantee the continuity of the project there had to be a taller for each Consejo Popular (People’s Council) in Havana and every time a new one comes everything must be explained again because they’re the professional strength of their People’s Councils The banality of new construction—what’s the best way to address this issue It is very difficult to solve this problem We have lost the guidelines for comparison a mason would have learned the skill from his father who might have worked with leading architects on some of the mansions in Vedado with good taste and enormous practical skill La Habana del Este was good because the workers had not yet learned to build badly; quality was still a basic requirement It is important to look for quality regardless of the money spent There are no longer individuals who know how to build well It’s important to make a few well-constructed buildings in visible places then at the periphery of the capital—including the restricted-access projects that the architect Salinas did in military areas or in MINFAR offices visible projects as examples or demonstrations Why are ideas and projects from the Faculty of Architecture in Havana not better known or publicized there’s very little promotion of what the Faculty does and everyone finds it hard to get there and back Faculty exhibitions were opened in the House of Green Gables so people can know what is wrong and what is right There are journalists with little architectural knowledge writing about the work They never mention the architect who designed it as they have no knowledge by which to assess whether the building is good or not dysfunctional buildings are often palmed off as bonita Criticism is frowned on because there’s always a government functionary in the background The problem is not technology but organization without our falling into the delusion that we will solve the housing problem in Cuba through access to cutting-edge technologies there was a search for the best architect in Cuba A group of architects and engineers were selected who were to create their works in an office where all their material needs were taken care of and they had the spiritual space in which to work That’s what Celia Sánchez and Pastorita Núñez did And the results of many competitions—where are they UNEAC launched a competition with the goal of repairing the sidewalks of La Rampa and adding mosaics with new works by more contemporary artists We have done projects for almost all places in Havana: to rehabilitate Calle Cuba where there were plans to build a cultural center so that maybe you can withdraw money later My wish is that Galiano again becomes Cuba’s shopping street and that the Otto Parellada (Tallapiedra) power plant is turned into a museum of modern art or science and technology Depressed areas in cities around the world have been rescued by putting museums there or universities where young people add life to the streets and thus fight against prostitution and drugs A view of one of the oldest parts of Havana The buildings in the city tell a story of inequality Miguel Coyula points at an open door in the middle of Old Havana The concrete facade has lost most of its paint "They are the remnants of something that was very glorious." and as he walks through the streets of Havana He sees how economic policies and social circumstances have shaped this city The buildings in Havana tell the story of two intersecting problems: one that everyone talks about — housing — and one that is typically discussed with great discretion — race and inequality Both of them have the potential to be hugely affected by a thaw in diplomatic relations with the United States why this contrast between these two buildings standing next to each other?" Coyula says that question has a one-word answer: money The egalitarian policies of the revolution resulted in a whole generation of home owners who don't have the money to maintain their places "Suppose for a moment that the people who live in the good house remember that they had a relative in Miami who can send them money," Coyula says "If we take an example in which the neighbors are earning the average salary think about having a relative in Miami who can send you $100 a month That means five monthly salaries in one round Immediately the gap between you and your neighbor is one to five But sometimes the gap is one to 50 or more." One of the promises of revolutionary Cuba was an egalitarian society Cuba made tenants owners of their apartments But people couldn't actually buy and sell their homes until two years ago One unintended consequence of those policies is a large class of homeowners who can't afford to maintain or repair their homes Coyula says a gallon of paint costs an average Cuban 30 percent of their monthly salary It means that Havana is literally falling down that the only way to thrive in Havana is to have fe — faith Except the "f" and the "e" stand for familia en el extranjero Tourists mill past a trumpet player in the restored part of Old Havana We meet up with Yusimí Rodríguez López in the restored part of Old Havana It's a part of Havana that is packed with tourists There are grand squares like the Plaza de las Palomas with its 16th-century basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi It's the one place in Havana where you see sidewalk cafes and government-run stores with brand-new shoes in display windows says she and her family can afford to eat at one of these restaurants perhaps once a year and I share the bedroom with my sister and my niece I mean three generations living together because there are no houses." López has written a lot about the black and white divide in Cuba it seems that everyone has it hard in Cuba but López says that black Cubans still face greater challenges "We have the same opportunities and that cannot be denied In fact one of the achievements of the Cuban revolution is that we Cubans have universal access to education and health but one of the mistakes that our government made was to declare that that there was no more racism in Cuba," López says He found that the revolutionary promise of an equal society was fraying: Blacks were unemployed at double the rates of whites; 85 percent of those in jail were darker-skinned Cubans; and most of those who held jobs as scientists or technicians were white According to research quoted by Espacio Laical a magazine published by the Cuban Catholic church the Gini coefficient of income inequality was 0.24 on the island (Zero represents complete equality and 1 represents complete inequality.) In recent years similar to the average for the rest of Latin America The prospect of deeper reform — one of a more market economy in Cuba — presents another problem If the economy opens up further – and even more money from overseas Cubans flows into the island — the gap between whites and blacks in Cuba will likely grow tropical sun we walk with López to a small ferry terminal It connects the restored part of the city to Regla a poor and largely black neighborhood across the Havana Bay during what the regime termed the island's "Special Period in Time of Peace," when the country was desperately trying to stay afloat after the collapse of the Soviet Union hijackers took over one of these boats with the intention of navigating it to Miami At the same time, many of the city's black residents — hungry and suffering — took to the streets to protest, all of this climaxing with Fidel Castro announcing that anyone who wanted to leave the island could do so. In the U.S., the summer of 1994 became known as the summer of the Cuban balsero crisis when more than 35,000 Cubans boarded rafts and boats and tested their luck in the straits of Florida we see Cubans loading bikes and carts and many of them are carrying flowers in the middle of Cuba's deep economic crisis one of the ferries to Regla was hijacked and taken to Miami Many of the passengers we saw carrying flowers walk toward the entrance and lay the flowers near an altar holding a statue of the black Madonna is a place of veneration in Cuba's blended observance of Catholicism and Santeria — the faith brought to Cuba by Yoruba slaves down streets with very few shops and hardly any cars or trucks They are hoping for some public attention to their plight They invite us in to where they live: transitional housing for people who have been homeless "There are 21 apartments here and 1 million sick kids," Qurian Betancourt pushing aside some clothes that's been hung to dry She has a small refrigerator; the tall ceilings have been dropped and converted into a second story where she sleeps Betancourt says the government gave her mother this space after their house collapsed while they were hammering something into the kitchen wall I came here as a girl and now I'm a woman and a mother." Betancourt has been here for more than a decade is growing up in this place and is now 6 years old Betancourt worries that Cuba is sending its doctors to help with Ebola in Africa while Cubans are living in inhumane conditions at home This couldn't have come as a great surprise alludes to the daily struggle that Cubans face The title — The Cuban Dream — also alludes to the hope of a better future López says that she didn't expect that we would able to see the things she had been describing earlier She feels like her complaints — of living with her mother and sharing a room with her niece of the difficulties of finding money to take a taxi — are small compared to the conditions here These people manage to live every day," López says I think Cubans are specialists in surviving." Become an NPR sponsor Click here to read our spring 2025 issue, featuring Caught by the Tides' Jia Zhangke and Zhao Tao, our annual spotlight on locations and more... 12:00 pm — Holiday Village Cinema IV The hardest decision was to steer Memories of Overdevelopment into a new direction The first version of the script was pretty much a synopsis of the novel Memorias del Desarrollo by Edmundo Desnoes The result is a hybrid of the visions of two different generations of Cubans: one born before the Revolution It spans more than 50 years of history within both Cuba and within the U.S — histories remembered in parallel to the personal life to the protagonist (and filtered through his cynicism) The irony is that my films up to this point have been devoid of political-historical context However in this film I felt compelled to delve into these subjects because I believed it was for the benefit of the film itself I know I would not have liked for somebody to transform my work But these choices resulted in a multilayered film much richer than what I had intended in the early stages of its making (Note: Desnoes wrote the 1960’s novel Memorias del Subdesarrollo which was the basis of the 1968 Cuban film of the same title directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea Coyula’s is a follow-up to Gutiérrez’s original film.) Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker While architecture drew nine interior design students to a study abroad trip to Cuba the heart of the experience turned out to be people assistant professor of interior design at NAU over spring break where students learned about historic preservation and the kindness of the Cuban people I knew that offering the chance to study adaptive reuse and historic preservation would be just a small part of the value gained from the trip,” Santana said “Students experienced the culture firsthand by living with host families who showed kindness far beyond expectation It touched the hearts of everyone on the trip to experience such generosity despite political tensions between our countries.” immersed themselves in the Cuban culture and 500 years of architectural history visiting plazas Colon Cemetery and the Museum of Revolution Santana said students made the correlation that their profession has a lot to do with politics—a key take-away for the burgeoning interior designers They were able to see first-hand how Cuban designers and architects consider cultural value and navigate political waters when converting historic buildings into new spaces like schools Coyula a well-known Cuban architect and professor at the University of Havana met with NAU students and discussed how cultural heritage can be derived from architecture While study abroad students Lindsey Griffin and April Beard learned a lot from the study of Cuban design they said it was the interaction with the people of Havana that will forever live in their hearts “They were the humblest people I’ve ever met,” said Beard “The state of political affairs between our countries didn’t matter to the Cuban people we met; they were so caring and always willing to help us added that she was surprised to feel more safe walking the streets of Havana than she does in some cities in America “It was an experience of a lifetime—so much more than architecture,” Griffin said “I’m forever grateful to have been given this opportunity and proud to be part of the first group from NAU to study abroad in Cuba.” Get The NAU Review email delivered to your inbox Sign up for The NAU Review now! The NAU Review is published by the NAU Communications If you have a news tip, share it with us! The ever-present reality of our own mortality is made only clearer when witnessing the fatality of our loftiest ideals by its champions and in the succeeding years since the Revolution of 1959 is a perfect storm of this idealistic swell and subsequent decay Memorias del desarrollo) returns with his signature surrealist style and temporal editing to take the expressive memories of the revolutionary poet Rafael Alcides and dive deep into the very heart of the Cuban people pulsing with a vibrantly unique vision and methodology that results in a film as cerebral as it is emotional Rafael Alcides was a celebrated writer of the Cuban revolution his disillusionment and rejection of Castro’s government forced upon him a stifling anonymity and he is currently salvaging what he can from his unpublished works as their homemade ink is literally fading off the pages This current crisis is the springboard from which Coyula weaves Alcides’ poetic remembrance of what the revolution was and art’s connection to the revolution as aid and adversary This extensive singular reminiscence of love deception and possibilities almost come to embody the culture of Cuba itself embracing the height of its dreams and the pits of its realities an intense auteurism crafts an impressionistic aesthetic to accompany the recollections of a broken heart mirroring a contemporary cynicism visuals pulled from both Coyula and Alcides’s lives and Alcides participating in imagined conversations and confrontations all add dense layers of complexity to the painting Coyula constructs Upon this is heaped numerous allusions to the manipulation wrought by film accompanied by distinctive classical scores and appropriated footage and sound from Hollywood movies such as Dracula (1931) and Citizen Kane (1941) The film never once relies on conventional storytelling seeming almost reactive to when Alcides says “I don’t like biographies” Each step of the story propelled by Alcides’ words is simultaneously injected with Coyula’s emotions and ideas impressing that we are accompanying them equally through this story its as if Werner Herzog had hired Andrei Tarkovsky to be his editor; the comprehensive ideas are sincere a resounding importance with every protestation made Every moment possesses significant weight and Coyula elevates the docu beyond just a unique historical account to an evocative discourse in the evolution of worldly humanist values and the roles of art and poetry Nadie is an irrevocable achievement in documentary filmmaking and should be seen as a benchmark from which the industry should emulate and evolve This article contains media that the editors have flagged as NSFW To view this content you need to create an account or log in many NY based photographers and film makers found themselves documenting one of the most traumatic events in American history an award-winning Cuban born filmmaker and writer Miguel didn’t hesitate and used his skills and gear to capture the scenes that unveiled before his eyes Scenes that were mistaken by many on that day for a film on TV later made it to miguel’s film Memories of Overdevelopment Memories of Overdevelopment (Spanish: Memorias del Desarrollo) is a 2010 Cuban film the story is based on a novel by Edmundo Desnoes also the author of the 1968 classic Memories of Underdevelopment This independent film was produced by David Leitner and features Cuban actor It is the first Cuban dramatic feature film with scenes filmed both in Cuba and the United States After its world Premiere at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival it went to gather several awards and honors The International Film Guide described it as one of the best films Cuba has produced A scene from Memories of Overdevelopment with actor Ron Blair A Scene from Memories of Overdevelopment with actor Ron Blair The videos and photos will help to teach the next generations about this tragic event in American History Read more about Miguel Coyula and his work: All images and videos were used with permission from the artist Limor Garfinkle lives and works in NYC as an art director and the in-house photographer for the ad agency SMA Started out in the field just three short years ago as a wedding photojournalist and soon after switched to architectural photography shooting interiors for commercial spaces such as Spotify I'm reporting on a trip I made this month to Havana One that everyone there talks about - housing And one that's typically discussed only with great discretion - race housing.Miguel Coyula is an architect and an economist He was my guide through the streets of Old Havana Many have marble stairs inside with chips and chunks missing The shutters may have been replaced on some windows but hang broken from others.MIGUEL COYULA: Look at this Look at that.SIEGEL: Everything needs work Everything we look at is cracked or...COYULA: Exactly a lot of do-it-yourself (laughter).SIEGEL: Revolutionary Cuba made tenants owners of their apartments One unintended consequence of those policies is a large class of homeowners who can't afford to maintain or repair their homes.COYULA: We estimate officially today the average salary is about 450 pesos - Cuban pesos - or about $20.SIEGEL: $20 a month?COYULA: $20 a month a gallon of paint will take 30 percent of your salary One gallon - that's it.SIEGEL: A new toilet would cost an average Cuban worker just over two years' pay The disrepair of Havana's housing stock is catastrophic.COYULA: You stand in front of two buildings why this contrast between two buildings next to each other Money - suppose for a moment that the people who live in the good house remembered that they had a relative in Miami who can send them money If we take an example in which the neighbors are earning the average salary - $20 a month - think about having a relative in Miami who can send you a hundred dollars a month the gap between you and your neighbor is 1-to-5 But sometimes the gap is 1-to-50 or more.SIEGEL: And when Miguel Coyula talks about disrepair he's not just talking about appearances.COYULA: Remember that every day at least three houses collapse - at least.SIEGEL: People in Havana typically have stories of seeing a balcony fall off a building or a wall collapse.UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: (Speaking French).SIEGEL: This is not what tourists see in the restored historic part of Old Havana It's now packed with tour groups and multilingual guides There are grand squares like the Plaza de las Palomas with its 16th-century basilica of St its sidewalk cafes and an array of licensed historical re-enactors street musicians and living statues.YUSIMI RODRIGUEZ LOPEZ: My life is staged for tourists.SIEGEL: Yusimi Rodriguez Lopez is a 38-year-old writer and journalist.LOPEZ: I still live with my mother three generations living together because there are no houses.SIEGEL: Yusimi you said that your life is more real than what we're looking at here You've written a lot about Afro-Cubans and race in Cuba.LOPEZ: Uh-huh.SIEGEL: You're black Is real different for black and white Cubans?LOPEZ: Well one of the achievements of the Cuban Revolution is that we Cubans have universal access to education and health But one of the mistakes that our government made was declaring no more racism in Cuba But racism has remained there.SIEGEL: She says statistics show that black Cubans are more likely to live in the worst circumstances and more likely to go to jail The definition of an Afro-Cuban is squishy So the reported numbers of Afro-Cubans are equally so There's a Cuban census estimate that 35 percent of Cubans are Afro-Cubans And there are independent Cuban estimates that run twice that high Here's a problem posed by the prospect of deeper reform - more of a market economy in Cuba If family abroad is going to count even more then the gap between whites and blacks in Cuba will likely grow.We went with Yusimi on a ferry to Regla a poor and largely black neighborhood across Havana Bay They were bringing them to the landmark church just across the water And then...UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: (Speaking Spanish).SIEGEL: A group of Afro-Cuban women hoping for some public attention to their plight Their rooms face the courtyard of an old factory which have the feel of a refugee camp.I'm inside a room And the little space upstairs that's been added - this is where Qurian Betancourt and her young daughter - a daughter she says has breathing problems - this is where they live It's where they've lived for years because her old home in Regla collapsed.QURIAN BETANCOURT: (Through interpreter) This is the house that the state gave me.SIEGEL: How many people live in this building?BETANCOURT: (Through interpreter) There are 21 apartments and one million sick kids There's tons of them.SIEGEL: But the old house that you lived in before fell down?BETANCOURT: (Through interpreter) One day we wanted to hammer something in the kitchen And we didn't have a home.SIEGEL: It must've been terrifying.BETANCOURT: (Through interpreter) It was terrible They're letting us die here.SIEGEL: Qurian Betancourt's daughter Calling this transitional housing is a euphemism Yusimi Rodriguez Lopez told me that this illustrates what she was saying The fact that the women are black does not surprise her.LOPEZ: You see this is - completely different picture from what you were seeing across the bay.SIEGEL: Are you surprised by what you're seeing here?LOPEZ: No I was - I'm surprised that it just corroborated what I told you I was thinking about that when I was speaking to you - that maybe I could sound exaggerated I'm privileged.SIEGEL: But people must have to devote a tremendous amount of energy to coping with everyday life.LOPEZ: Yes I think Cubans are specialists in surviving.SIEGEL: Afro-Cuban writer Yusimi Rodriguez Lopez - she's published a collection of short stories that has not been translated yet from the Spanish But its title is English - "The Cuban Dream." Copyright © 2015 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information 43,000+ global companies doing business in the region 102,000+ key contacts related to companies and projects news and interviews about your industry in English Parque Coppelia is known as 'la catedral de helado' – the ice cream cathedral (Credit: Christopher P Baker)This state-run ‘people’s park’ offers a for-pennies indulgence for the masses and serves an average of 30,000 customers a day – and up to 600 at any one time Analies Gómez Coyula is deep into her third bowl of helado (ice cream) is equally engrossed as he spoons up his 13th scoop of vanilla with two ensaladas – five scoops apiece – already devoured She unfurls an abanico and fans herself against the heat of Havana in May then ladles the contents of her third bowl into a plastic container to take away I feel abstemious in comparison with my single ensalada mixta of five flavours topped with caramel sauce and crushed cookies We’re at Parque Coppelia, the world’s largest ice cream parlour and an iconic institution in Cuba. Taking up an entire block diagonally opposite the Hotel Habana Libre in the once-tony Vedado district this state-run ‘people’s park’ offers a for-pennies indulgence for the masses and serves an average of 30,000 customers a day – and up to 600 at any one time the entire city seems to descend seeking relief The helado – served with taciturn efficiency by waitresses in 1950s plaid miniskirts – wins no awards But no other experience speaks so sweetly to Cuba’s revolutionary idealism • The world’s oldest ice cream? • The man making the world’s tallest bike • Denmark’s sweet answer to prohibition Parque Coppelia is laid out as four outdoor parks At its heart is a two-storey domed pavilion that resembles a flying saucer mounted on spidery legs Seemingly inspired by Oscar Niemeyer’s Cathedral of Brasilia the pavilion is appropriately known as la catedral de helado (the ice cream cathedral) – a perfect metaphor in a country devoted to frozen dairy Cubans worship at the heladería (ice cream store) Each section has its own queue proportional in length to the strength of the sun “It’s a tradition,” 56-year-old Ana Lidia told me “It’s where I used to get together with my friends as a child.” “It’s where you take family members on their birthday,” added Coyula explaining that today is her aunt’s birthday “It’s the perfect place for a first date,” he said when you’ve finished eating you can go to the movies at Cine Yara across the street.” music scores conceived (Cuban songwriter Frank Delgado even wrote Coppelia in homage) and – this being Cuba – perhaps even babies Coppelia even famously became Havana’s preferred gay cruising ground as portrayed in the Oscar-nominated Cuban movie Fresa y Chocolate (Strawberry and Chocolate) “I love strawberry,” said flamboyantly bohemian Diego as he tried to seduce David “Mmmmm… It’s the only good thing made in Cuba,” he added before slowly The two flavours have ever since been loaded with coded meaning about sexual orientation “Is it true that straight Cuban males won’t eat strawberry ice cream?” I once asked a table mate breaking the silence as I spooned up my rapidly melting helado a statuesque middle-aged lady with skin the colour of aubergine laughed then looked around “That’s because they’re only serving vanilla today,” I replied then returned to devouring her ice cream in silence But all talk ends once they’re seated with ice cream Conversation at the shared tables barely rises above a murmur always choosing an outdoor section where the sunlight filtered down through the royal palms and jagüeyes (banyans) I joined the line at the corner of L and 23 Streets for the spaceship pavilion singles from kids to abuelas (grandmothers) young couples in school uniform flirting and openly necking.. Cuba’s rich diversity was waiting in line with feverish anticipation to pig out on as much ice cream as they could stuff into their bellies and handbags Inured to waits of one hour (longer on hot weekends) some habaneros (residents of Havana) wandered off to find pockets of shade while others disappeared from view altogether and the line coalesced in perfect order through some unfathomable and puissant osmosis communal homageWe filed down a narrowing path that led to the pavilion The ground floor – open on all sides – featured a curved marble-topped counter with barstools a spiral staircase coiled like a nautilus shell to the mothership above slanting over a four-leaf clover of circular rooms separated by stained-glass panes and open to the alfresco parks below Seven flavours were posted on boards by the entrance Concerned for my soaring cholesterol count I ordered a two-scoop jimagua (twins) of vanilla “You don’t want an ensalada?” my waitress asked There wasn’t a person around me who hadn’t ordered at least two of the five-scoop option Vedado was a chic upper-middle-class district and Cuba a highly stratified society with a vast impoverished underclass chose Coppelia as the setting of Fresa y Chocolate because Fidel and confidante Celia Sánchez conceived Coppelia (which Sánchez named after her favourite ballet) as a way of transforming a run-down beer garden into an urban Arcadia where everyone – poor gay and straight – could collectively enjoy subsidised ice cream as equals No other experience speaks so sweetly to Cuba’s revolutionary idealism“Oooof It was a place where kids got together to socialise,” recalled my queue mate 46-year-old Vivian Hernández swaying and drumming her fingers to piped-in music by Cuban musical duo Buena Fé And banana splits,” piped her same-age cousin Daneis “You got tabacitos in the sundaes,” she added recalling biscuit tubes named for small cigars vaca blanco,” added 72-year-old Jorge Coalla Potts who wistfully recited a long list of specials white cow – a vanilla sundae with Coca-Cola or lemonade A ‘chocolate soldier’ was a tall sundae with chocolate ice cream; a turquino especial was a vertical cake between scoops of ice cream Then came the Special Period – the time of terrible scarcity caused by the collapse of the Soviet Bloc Cuba lost its main supplies of butter and powdered milk the Cuban government had to choose between butter and ice cream But Coppelia kept on serving one peso (three pence) scoops albeit reduced to only one or two flavours – an appetising indulgence that neither economic hardship nor the US’ stiffened embargo could stop In a land where the average monthly salary is about 750 Cuban pesos (£20) and many people still subsist on food rations this populist oasis of plenty guarantees that Cubans can enjoy as much of this sugary treat as they want at little cost Frozen Flavours is a series from BBC Travel uncovering ancient traditions behind ice cream and the different ways the frozen treat is enjoyed around the world Join more than three million BBC Travel fans by liking us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter and Instagram If you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newsletter called "If You Only Read 6 Things This Week". A handpicked selection of stories from BBC Future, Earth, Culture, Capital and Travel, delivered to your inbox every Friday. Coppelia is all about the communal experience: resist being steered toward a small ‘tourist’ section offering immediate service for an exorbitant one peso convertible (75 pence) per scoop. All other sections charge in local pesos (aka moneda nacional); convertible pesos aren’t accepted. You’re expected to vacate your seat as soon as you’re finished to make way for those still queuing outside. Would you eat a meal dreamed up by a computer?AI v The Mind: We explore the world of food and ask if human expertise is the only way to deliver great flavour. Turkey's wild and rugged Black Sea regionFood writer Nick Kwek finds out how the wild landscape of Turkey's Black Sea region influences local cuisine. The blunder that changed chickens foreverHow this one simple mistake gave birth to the 50-billion-dollar US chicken industry. The hunt for the world's most expensive fungusReel takes you to Italy to explore how the world's rarest and most expensive ingredient ends up on our tables. What food and drink is good for your memory?What we eat, it turns out, can have an impact on how well our memory works. How safe is frozen fruit?A huge recall of frozen fruits is currently happening across the US due to contamination fears. The world's oldest drinkable champagneHow the discovery of the world's oldest drinkable champagne is inspiring new green solutions. The harmful legacy of poor nutritionWhat we eat, or don’t eat, can have a huge impact on us and the generations after us. The truth behind your favourite flavoursThe psychology and biology of flavour preference is some of the most fascinating science out there. Japan: Creating the first wagyu beef in a labWe meet the scientists creating wagyu beaf, a Japanese delicacy with a distinctive texture, from cells. How a vegan diet can affect your brainCan changing to a vegan diet impact the health of your brain? The fight to feed humanityA look at how the world's farmers responding to some of the greatest threats to global food security. The surprising role chocolate played for ancient humansWe discover why the use of chocolate is older than we think, and the role it played for ancient humans. How beetroot can enhance your performanceIn the past decade, new evidence has suggested that nitrates in beetroots can enhance athletic performance. The truth about drinking raw milkThe debate for and against pasteurisation across industries and seas is a passionate one. The Russian food obsession inspired by the USWhat thick, tangy, creamy white sauce links Stalin, French haute cuisine and American mass industrialisation? Why is cod so popular in Portugal?From kings to dictators, Portugal’s leaders have always used cod as a political tool. How sushi took over the worldThinly sliced raw fish on plain white rice. How did this Japanese staple become a global sensation? The truth about supplements and who should be taking themBy 2025 sales of vitamins and supplements are expected to reach an estimated 700 million USD - but do they work? Why we should treat food like medicineMore people than ever are expected to suffer from diet-related illnesses. A tour of Havana along with Catalina Lasa is the proposal in the form of a book by famous Cuban architect Mario Coyula Cowley presented in the context of Cuba International Book Fair book published by Ediciones Unión publishing house marks the debut as a novelist of the 2001 National Architecture Award recipient the new role as creator of works of fiction gives Coyula the opportunity to merge his two trades The protagonist of the text is none other than the Creole patrician Catalina Lasa in the Havana neighborhood of Vedado (now House of Friendship) he also ordered the construction of a magnificent Art Deco mausoleum in the Colón Cemetery Catalina and Juan Pedro were the stars of the outrageous love story that shook the Cuban society in the early twentieth century when there was still no divorce law in Cuba My grandfather had fought in the war with her brother and together they came in the invasion of East to West For me Catalina Lasa is the tropical Ana Karenina and I make a confession: I was very much influenced by the fact she was cute and I have a weakness for beauty Many of the things I describe really happened but others didn’t I mix the times and the characters so I recommend reading it carefully to recognize or understand the trick Did the architecture of the house of Catalina influence for documentation and descriptions that you made a long chapter is on the house and there is also much of the architecture of Havana where her last residence and the chapel where her remains rest a masterpiece of French master glassmaker and jeweler René Lalique In the novel there are three main characters On the latter I don’t show a very positive image reflecting a contrast between him and Catalina’s family that was pro independence for its part Baró was always very aware of not complicating his life in the conflagration and he went to Paris to avoid being involved in that aspect that would change the country’s destiny I tell you more: slowly Catalina’s character gives away her space and then the architect gains more presence which allows me to tackle more the 40s and 50s which is also a time that is not known or is not handled well in Cuba All these classes are addressed very briefly in our country The representation is that all mambises were unblemished heroes but also in the outline appears that all who died were heroes while those who remained alive and entered politics became bandits he was involved in politics for forty years and did not steal a penny became famous for that because it was not actually mainstream I was in debt to that world and with breaking the scheme the myth that the wealthy were clumsy and did not know how to spend their money where and what other documents enrich the Cuban one The first edition of my novel was in Seville but I kept the rights because I had interest to publish it in Cuba and the rights to the English version that still has not materialized In this second edition I corrected many aspects; I removed exaggerated information added original photos of the mansion located in Paseo that I got through a niece of Catalina Lasa when I read some scenes from the original version of the book in 2011 in Miami The conversation here is moderated according to OnCuba News discussion guidelines. Please read the Comment Policy before joining the discussion Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" OnCuba and the OnCuba logo are registered® trademarks of Fuego Enterprises OnCuba and the OnCuba logo are registered® trademarks of Fuego Enterprises This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page The Cuban people is in mourning for Mario Coyula one of the most indispensable architecture in the Cuban debate nowadays just now when our country needs to debate on the present and future Among his works highlights the Martyrs’ Park in San Lazaro and Infanta Streets; the Mausoleum of March 13 Heroes at colon Cemetery He used to be the head of important centers like CUJAE Architecture School the Architecture and Urbanism Office in Havana the Integral Development Group of the Capital and the Commission of Monuments from Havana All mentioned above was not his best legacy suggests solution and submits to the unanimity Trabajadores Newspaper gives you several articles published on this important Cuban intellectual He is an “architect” who had devoted his life to investigation study and teaching all he knows in his busy time and loved by many people who have shared with him affable with an intelligence he has cultivated He is an architect and a genuine intellectual He is the main character in the transformations that had taken place in Havana during the second half of the 20th century urbanism is what he is interested on the most; the way people use the city for good or bad environment is the most important thing for me It deals with all those aspects where the problems ways and functions of the cities have to do with It studies the way people use or “should use” that space where society develops “Architects were the ones in charged to these aspects in Cuba and they devoted their lives to these studies The third part of the Cuban population lives in cities This is typical in the Caribbean countries “Old Havana municipality is an example of how a city can have a self finance thanks to the traditions and the patrimony This historical center contributes to economy of the nation There is a political will to put an end to indiscipline or lack of culture There are attempted against urbanism and planning It is indispensible to an economic improvement together with a cultural value in the population for the creation of good models,” Coyula said manuel aranzola and luis enrique aparicio share their proposal the competition asked architects and designers from across the world to develop a house for the jorejick family on a site near karatu the brief looked for a scheme that could be implemented not only in tanzania but also in other african countries where good quality and affordable housing is an increasing problem the design team decided to position the house near important features such as existing trees they layout of the building is formed as a functional rhombus in which the family can carry out their daily activities contained by a rammed earth wall and covered by a floating roof plane the house is designed to maximize the interior-exterior relationship with spaces as open as possible without losing privacy the house is composed of a strip of rooms that surround the other functions the continuous rammed earth wall wraps around all these space which end up marking the interior space consisting of the kitchen and a bright and spacious dining room the interior is well ventilated thanks to the large fractured roof that allows the inside spaces to be bright and the hot air to be evacuated efficiently the roof structure is supported by a wooden truss formed with 4 “x 2” and 3 “x 2” inch beams the supports vary and are optimized to take advantage of the walls to reduce costs and facilitate construction the house has a biogas system that uses solid waste from the latrines and animals in the biodigester easy to build and very favorable for rural life contributes to reducing levels of deforestation for energy purpose and reduces the risk of disease transmission through the reduction of pathogens the water collection systems are used in the livestock roof (stored in the troughs and the surplus to the biodigester) and in the house (designed to store all the water that falls on the surface of the roof later driven by the wall inclined towards the tanks and the cistern) competition: archstorming designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here. AXOR presents three bathroom concepts that are not merely places of function but destinations in themselves — sanctuaries of style Edited by Damian Donestevez 2017-08-23 09:39:11 The Havana based Italian architect died at the age of 90 He was among the professionals who designed Havana’s Art Schools along with Vittorio Garatti and Ricardo Porro was the first and only foreigner who received the National Architecture Award for the work of an entire life in 2016 Gottardi arrived in Havana with the triumph of the Cuban Revolution in 1959 political and social changes in the Cuban nation He got involved in designing and building schools stages and restaurants representing the island’s revolutionary ideology and the context in which they were constructed routine and repetition and for a contemporary Cuban architecture opposed to imported models He was one of the first contemporary professionals to integrate the new in renovating old buildings by contrast giving value to old elements and integrating them to modernity without creating a visual chaos or underestimating the values of renovated historical buildings His most emblematic work is the Art School complex in Havana along with his work as a trainer of architects and researcher enter your e-mail address in the box below