FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FUEGO en Calle Ocho Presents Artivismo por la Libertad: New Artworks from Inside Cuba, Book Presentation, Poetry and Music

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FUEGO en Calle Ocho Presents Artivismo por la Libertad: New Artworks from Inside Cuba, Book Presentation, Poetry and Music

MIAMI, FL — FUEGO en Calle Ocho returns this June with Artivismo por la Libertad, a week-long exhibition showcasing newly arrived artworks from inside Cuba alongside literature, poetry, music, and conversations centered on artistic freedom, memory, and resistance.

The exhibition will be open daily from June 22–26 at Galindo Art Studio (1067 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33130) beginning at 11:00 a.m. Admission is free and open to the public.

Together, the exhibition will present more than 30 newly arrived works from artists inside Cuba, all of which are being exhibited in the United States for the first time, offering visitors a rare opportunity to experience contemporary Cuban resistance art directly from the island.

The exhibition features 19 previously unseen works by Cuban resistance visual artist Dayán Melián Castro, all being exhibited in the United States for the first time. Melián Castro's work explores life under censorship, scarcity, and repression. He was recently detained after peacefully protesting Cuba's ongoing blackout crisis.

Two new series will be presented:

Cercado (10 works)

Cercado explores the experience of confinement through visual symbolism. Created from within Cuba, the series examines the tension between freedom and control, transforming familiar national symbols into spaces of enclosure.

Representing the Cuban people, the works speak to enduring, waiting, resisting, and surviving within a system that seeks to limit movement, expression, possibility, and the universal desire to be free. Through delicate line work and powerful symbolism, Cercado reflects on what it means to live enclosed while continuing to dream of open spaces.

Inanición (9 works)

Inanición is a visual meditation on survival under scarcity. Through surrealist drawings, the artist transforms ordinary Cuban objects, food, symbols, and tools into distorted anatomical forms, exposing the intimate relationship between hunger, deprivation, memory, and power.

Created from inside Cuba, the series explores not only physical hunger but also cultural, spiritual, and civic hunger. The works portray a society forced to consume itself in order to survive after decades under a failed communist dictatorship.

In collaboration with Juventud Cuba, a Cuban exile organization based in Spain, the exhibition will also feature 13 additional works inspired by Cuban graffiti and street art culture, created by artists including Cok's, Kadir 13 PMT, Napoleón, Azul, 2+2=5?, Taiko, Mata Viera, Abepi, Soul, Qco el Gancho, Nana Francies, and Manson.

The exhibition also highlights the work of Juventud Cuba's Exprésate en Dictadura initiative, a collaborative art project that uses visual art to explore themes of freedom, identity, censorship, memory, and resistance. Through partnerships with artists and activists, the project seeks to amplify Cuban voices and bring greater visibility to the realities faced by Cubans both on and off the island.

These works draw inspiration from the ongoing struggle for freedom, dignity, and self-expression in Cuba. Influenced by graffiti and street art culture, the artists use their work to document lived experiences, preserve collective memory, and give visual form to the hopes, frustrations, sacrifices, and resilience of the Cuban people.

These works also include pieces inspired by the stories of Cuban political prisoners and their families, including current Cuban political prisoner and artist Fernando “Nando OBDC” Almenares, who collaborated artistically from Cuba in FUEGO Art Basel 2024. Almenares was later imprisoned by the Cuban regime and remains behind bars today.

Special Closing Event — Friday, June 26

The exhibition will conclude with a special evening celebration:

7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Reception and exhibition viewing

8:00 p.m.

Book presentation of Mi diario personal de Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara by Cuban writer, journalist, and activist María Matienzo Puerto.

The book will also be available as a free digital download for attendees and readers interested in learning more about the life and experiences of one of Cuba's most recognized contemporary artists and dissidents.

Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara is a Cuban artist, activist, founder of the San Isidro Movement, and political prisoner imprisoned because of his artistic and civic activism. His case has become an international symbol of artistic freedom and government repression in Cuba.

8:30 p.m.

Live poetry featuring Luis Eligio Omni

9:00 p.m. and beyond

Music featuring David Omni, Ras Sandino, El Mecca, and additional artists.

All participating performers are Cuban resistance artists who created and performed their work in Cuba despite censorship, surveillance, and police harassment. Many were members of Omni Zona Franca and the San Isidro Movement, two influential artistic movements that challenged authoritarianism through literature, music, performance art, and civic activism. Today, they continue their artistic and cultural work in exile while advocating for freedom of expression and human rights in Cuba.

Donation Drive

Throughout the exhibition, FUEGO will collect donations for Cuban political prisoners and resistance artists.

Requested items include:

• Nonperishable food
• Over-the-counter medications
• Hygiene products
• Art supplies

Donations will help support artists Fernando Almenares (Nando OBDC), Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, and independent artists continuing to create from inside Cuba despite difficult conditions.

Organizer Statement

"Fuego is about preserving our culture and our truth, celebrating talented artists that tell their Cuban resistance stories through their art and connecting them to the world. Facts change minds. Art changes hearts. When both work together, the impact is greater than either one alone."

— Ivette Dominguez, Organizer, FUEGO

About FUEGO

FUEGO (Fuego contra el Fuego: Arte de Consciencia) is an independent cultural initiative that uses art, music, literature, and public dialogue to amplify the voices of artists and activists confronting censorship, repression, and human rights abuses in Cuba.

Learn More

Additional information, featured artwork, artist spotlights, and exhibition updates can be found at:

fuegoencalleocho.blogspot.com

Follow FUEGO on social media:

Instagram & Facebook: @fuego_contra_el_fuego

#ArtIsNotACrime #FuegoContraElFuego #ExpresateEnDictadura #FreeNando #FreeLuisMa

Media Contact

Ivette Dominguez

Email: ivette.email@gmail.com