MARCEL MOLINA
Marcel Molina was born and raised in the city of Cienfuegos, in south central Cuba. Cienfuegos is the 9th largest city in Cuba and known as “The Pearl” because of its natural beauty along the Caribbean and its dramatic architectural features.
For over a century, it was a major center for Cuba’s sugar industry – it’s main crop until recent years. With exquisite detail and prowess, Marcel's work attempts to bring the viewer closer to the history of the sugar industry and its most important symbols. He has shown widely throughout Cuba, Europe and the United States. In 2013, Marcel was awarded the Belkis Ayon prize in Cienfuegos for his mastery of this medium, woodblocks. He later was awarded the Cuban National Prize in Printmaking.
Artist Statement
"I'm interested in physical space with all of its possibilities; the calm, the silence and solitude in my work is achieved through the repetition of one solitary element, whether it refers to tombs, sanctuaries, or the “batey” (the houses in the sugar mill community). These images retain a vitality, as if at any moment, everything could return to life.
I often use the patterns created by fingerprints as a way of illustrating identity. The human element is then integrated with the physical spaces depicted in the images."
