Page 61 - ART GIANTS issue of World of Art (WOA) Contemporary Art Magazine

Born in the small town of Sagua La Grande, Cuba, Wifredo Lam volume Fata Morgana (1941), which will be on view. After
(1902–1982) emigrated at age 21 to pursue training as a painter fleeing France in 1941, Lam returned to Cuba after almost two
in Madrid, where he would combine modern approaches with decades abroad, and he began experimenting with a variety of
explorations of his identity and political beliefs. Organized techniques, including painting with extremely thinned-out oils
loosely chronologically, the exhibition will begin with some of to heavy impasto, leaving large swaths of canvas unpainted,
these early paintings made during his time in Spain, including and using a range of palettes, from vibrant colors to grisaille
Lam’s first monumental work on paper mounted on canvas, and warm hues of brown. The retrospective will focus on how
La Guerra civil which will be on view in the United States for Lam’s return to Cuba led to an absolute reinvention of his work
the first time in over 30 years. In 1938, Lam moved to Paris, and the creation, in rapid succession, of some of his most
where he met artists and writers such as Pablo Picasso and important works, including The Jungle (1942–43), which has
André Breton. After escaping to Marseille during the Nazi been in MoMA’s collection since 1945. Arguably his bestknown
occupation of Paris, Lam collaborated with Surrealists who work, The Jungle references the tropical Caribbean landscape,
were also awaiting safe passage out of Europe, among these with its brutal history of sugarcane plantations and slavery,
collaborations is a collection of drawings for Breton’s poetry along with references to Afro-Caribbean religious practices.

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