Carlos Martiel
The performances of Cuban artist Carlos Martiel are ritualistic, often involving the artist exposing his naked body to pain, and conjuring notions of sacrifice and religious purge. Martiel’s performances reflect the body’s response to difficult situations, such as censorship or persecution for political or cultural reasons. In his performance, Prodigal Son (2010) which won the 2013 Arte Laguna Prize, the artist kneels on the floor and pins his bare chest with five medals that the Cuban government awarded to his father. The act is performed in an official manner, as the artist saves face before a painful societal sacrifice.
Martiel’s works have been included in Havana Biennial (2009), Pontevedra Biennal (2010), Liverpool Biennial (2010), Biennial “La Otra”, Bogota (2013), and International Performance Art Biennale in Houston (2014). He has had solo exhibitions at the Contemporary Art Center “Wifredo Lam” in Havana, Nitsch Museum in Naples, Axeneo 7 in Montreal, Lux Gallery in Guatemala City, and Steve Turner Contemporary in Los Angeles. He has received several awards, including “CIFOS Grants & Commissions Program Award” in Miami, “Arte Laguna” in Venice, and “Close Up Award” in Vallarta, Mexico. His work has been exhibited in Estonian Museum of Art and Design in Tallinn, …
The performances of Cuban artist Carlos Martiel are ritualistic, often involving the artist exposing his naked body to pain, and conjuring notions of sacrifice and religious purge. Martiel’s performances reflect the body’s response to difficult situations, such as censorship or persecution for political or cultural reasons. In his performance, Prodigal Son (2010) which won the 2013 Arte Laguna Prize, the artist kneels on the floor and pins his bare chest with five medals that the Cuban government awarded to his father. The act is performed in an official manner, as the artist saves face before a painful societal sacrifice.
Martiel’s works have been included in Havana Biennial (2009), Pontevedra Biennal (2010), Liverpool Biennial (2010), Biennial “La Otra”, Bogota (2013), and International Performance Art Biennale in Houston (2014). He has had solo exhibitions at the Contemporary Art Center “Wifredo Lam” in Havana, Nitsch Museum in Naples, Axeneo 7 in Montreal, Lux Gallery in Guatemala City, and Steve Turner Contemporary in Los Angeles. He has received several awards, including “CIFOS Grants & Commissions Program Award” in Miami, “Arte Laguna” in Venice, and “Close Up Award” in Vallarta, Mexico. His work has been exhibited in Estonian Museum of Art and Design in Tallinn, Estonia, Museum of Modern Art of Buenos Aires, Bellevue Museum of Arts in Washington, Robert Miller Gallery in New York, among others.
Schoepflin Collection, Lörrach, Germany
Adrastus Collection, Arévalo, Spain
Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation, Miami, US
The Farber Collection, New York, US
Fondazione Morra, Naples, Italy
