This is an interview with the prominent Cuban painter Manuel Alfredo Sosabravo, who turns 80 years of life.
In 1950, you attended a Wifredo Lam exhibition in the Central Park of Havana. How was that early contact with the visual arts luck, and how did it influence the love relationship that I have had with the arts for the last 60 years?
I have always had artistic concerns, but did not know what to do with them. I thought I could become a musician. When I was 18 years old, I started listening to classical music on the CMBF station. I just became a pianist and entered a music school to study music theory. I was on top of my class when it came to theory, but last in terms of musicality. He also wrote some stories that were published in the literary pages of newspapers such as Diario de la Marina. However, I soon realized that it was not my line of work.
Six decades of loyal devotion to the arts. Has your career always been pleasant or have you had some ups and downs?
It has been very nice, it was a goal that I set for myself when I was 20 years old and six decades later, I feel that I have achieved.
During the inauguration of his most recent exhibition, the Historian of the City of Havana, Eusebio Leal, described his work as an eternal smile. what do you think about it?
Fortunately, I am very optimistic and that is clearly reflected in my work. It is kind of natural. Even the most dramatic themes have had a touch of humor. It's not something I learned, I guess it's just a part of me.
All artists are said to follow a ritual when they give birth to a new job. Do you have any?
I want to take a walk through my garden. That reminds me of the countryside and my childhood. That little piece of nature is almost part of my artistic work. Before I do anything in my studio, I go there, take a walk, and then I get to work. When I get tired, I am going to get spiritual regeneration, then I keep working full of energy. It's like filling the tank of the car.
You have a large collection of works, but is there a piece or series that you have a special love for?
There are many, but a very special one is the mural on the façade of the Habana Libre Hotel, the first one I did. It is different from the rest because I had no previous experience.
When you work do you visualize the piece in your mind in the first place, or do you bring it up in the process?
I always have some prior ideas. Sometimes the phrases or titles of the films give me a starting point.
If you had to choose a special moment in your career, what would it be?
When I decided to be a painter at the age of 20.
Many critics refer to the constant dynamics of his aesthetic discourse and the increasingly daring pictorial methods. Do you consider yourself a stubborn artist?
I am not the obsessive type, but I am meticulous when it comes to working out all the details of my work.
What is most striking: the cunning of every detail, or the amazement of the finished work?
Both.
Tell us about the mysterious force, like some garment, that joins the color.
That is the result of experience. In that constant search throughout my career, I have always experimented to achieve the color I want.
Who are your favorite artists?
When I started painting, my favorite painters were Mariano, Víctor Manuel, and Portocarrero. Of contemporary painters, I admire Fabelo. When I heard about artists from all over the world, I never stopped liking Cubans, but I have discovered others that felt like family, as there were points of contact in our work.
How to celebrate the birth of your new creations?
I guess just like a woman giving birth, although not with pain, but pleasure instead. When I finish I always think that my baby is really beautiful.
It is clear that you are an intrepid artist who is always ready to take new risks, but no matter what new things you may find along the way, always maintain consistency in your aesthetic language. How important do you think it should keep the same style?
All artists try to identify with a way of working that is achieved by assimilating and rejecting influences until they find their own style. I have always believed that the painters in the original story are just cavemen and they weren't really painters, but people trying to reflect their life and wishes.
For many people, Sosabravo: a country, a world, a universe. What is that universe like?
It's very simple. I'm not complicated, stunned technical stuff myself. Maybe other people use the computer to do some of their work, I don't know how to work with a computer. I am very primitive. It takes time and quiet to do the job that makes me feel satisfied.