Fifty years ago, poet Heberto Padilla was forced to publicly denounce himself and his friends as counterrevolutionaries.
Author Archives: Coco Fusco
Coco Fusco is an artist and writer and professor of art at The Cooper Union.
Posted inOpinion
Cuban Musicians and Artists Collaborate on Viral, Political Music Video
The “Patria y Vida” video is spreading like wildfire in Cuba and Miami, a sign of widespread discontent on the island as well as unity among Cubans.
Posted inArt
We Need New Institutions, Not New Art
Coco Fusco writes on why “equity won’t be achieved by a new biennial, another emerging artist of color survey, or a record auction sale by a Black artist.”
Posted inOpinion
Case Dismissed: On Cuban Artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara’s Arrest and Release
The artist has been detained over 20 times in two years. But this time, his colleagues on the island mobilized in his defense — and that made all the difference.
Posted inOpinion
Cuba’s Campaign Against Artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara
The treatment of Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara is emblematic of a struggle in Cuba over who defines and controls art and culture.
Posted inArt
An Insider’s View of the Cuban Art World and 2019 Havana Biennial
In an in-depth interview translated from Spanish, artist and scholar Coco Fusco discusses the 2019 Havana Biennial and state of the Cuban art world with poet and cultural commentator Katherine Bisquet.
Posted inArt
Why Did Cuba Deport Artists Trying to Attend Havana’s First Alternative Biennial? [UPDATED]
While governments and the media may tout the reforms in Cuba, the reality for artists on the island nation is far more precarious.
Posted inArt
How the Art World, and Art Schools, Are Ripe for Sexual Abuse
The art world is structured in a way that enables abuses, and the problem is especially acute at art schools.
Posted inOpinion
Censorship, Not the Painting, Must Go: On Dana Schutz’s Image of Emmett Till
Presuming that calls for censorship and destruction constitute a legitimate response to perceived injustice leads us down a very dark path.
Posted inOpinion
Why an Art Strike? Why Now?
The time for thinking about how the imminent political shift will impact the lives and livelihoods of artists is upon us.