If Lesbia Vent Dumois is sure of one thing, it is that art is part of her life, something that she cannot separate herself from or give it a single adjective. Art, he believes, influences everything from food preparation and dressing to writing. Art coexists with her, with us, always.
With Lesbia, 2019 National Fine Arts Prize winner, it is not difficult to chat. Transmits sincerity, humility and courage. She walks through the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba as if it were her house, a house that – as she says – has welcomed her for so many years.
His studies highlight painting, drawing and sculpture, as well as lithography and pedagogy. For her, age does not represent a mere noun that can be translated as an impediment, because Lesbia, above all things, loves to create.
«I like to dedicate time to creation. I would say, like some people, that I have become a Saturday and Sunday painter for many years, especially on Sundays, which I do not give to anyone, because that day I do have to go to the workshop.
The artist spoke with Granma, regarding the recent recognition that distinguished her as a Labor Hero of the Republic of Cuba.
–How were your beginnings in the art world? Was there any family influence?
–I always say that I came to the plastic arts because of my parents, first I saw them doing a creative activity.
«My father was an excellent cabinetmaker, and I was always interested in seeing how he had to draw. I think to some extent that inspired me. My mother was an excellent dressmaker; In addition to sewing, she designed, she had to make the mold, the embroidery and draw.
«Above all, my parents were very interested in me studying fine arts, because at that time a school had just been created in Santa Clara. So, after going to junior high school during the day, at night I attended that academy.
«That’s where my interest in the plastic arts began. And since after one starts it doesn’t stop, I continued in the subsequent course, and I entered that world of exhibitions, of the art that is promoted, of what was done in Cuba and what was not, until reaching this date.
–His work is deeply connected to the social and political reality of Cuba. How has the Revolution influenced your artistic vision and the topics you address?
–The Revolution comes to me easily, because I work with everyday life, and there is nothing more everyday than the Revolution.
«It’s not that I propose to do a political work, that comes naturally to me, as it was to belong to the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, the Federation of Cuban Women and the Communist Party of Cuba. Therefore, it is reflected in my work as well.
«Another topic in which I am recurring is the female figure, because women are linked to everything in this country. We have been workers inside and outside the home, we go beyond our “habituality.” We can be a ballet dancer or a machine transporter in agriculture. For that and much more, it serves as a topic for me to discuss in art.
If you ask him about any anecdote, Lesbia remembers what his first years were like directing the Plastic Arts section of Uneac. He says wanting to be present and collaborate helped get him into the position.
“Before it was chaired only by men, and I came every day, took the minutes at the meetings, and little by little I was incorporated into the Cuban intellectuality.”
Regarding her recent award, Heroine of Labor of the Republic of Cuba, she confesses that she did not expect it, “first, because of my age; Second, because I think that many of the colleagues who accompany me are recognized in me.
«One does not work alone, we depend on institutions, people, proposals, that is why I think it is, in some way, a collective award.
«I thought it was nice that it was the President of the Republic who presented the recognition. And I have been privileged because, two days before, I was awarded the medal
Haydee Santamaría, who has great value, for the years that I was close to her working.
–This award praises the work of many people throughout their lives. How was the feeling when meeting other heroines and heroes of work?
–I was surprised to see myself surrounded by people who I consider deserved it more than me. Above all, when I arrived and saw myself next to the director of the National Choir of Cuba, Digna Guerra, it was a great satisfaction, because we have been co-workers for many years.
«Also when I realized that I was going to have Isabel Monal, one of the founders of the National Theater of Cuba and the entire revolutionary process, as a companion, I felt more than recognized.
“In addition, seeing myself surrounded by workers who have dedicated their lives to different professions undoubtedly represents a source of pride for me.”
–What is Lesbia currently doing?
–Stealing a little time from everything. For two months he has not directed the Fine Arts section, but I cannot get rid of it.
“Although I don’t work very often, I remain connected, I think about the works I have done and the topics I can venture into.”
Surrounding herself with youth is one of the motivations for this great artist, “because they provide things to face again.”
–What message would you like to transmit to the new generations of Cuban artists?
–Let them work. Let them work hard, because the country needs it. Youth is not the future, but the present, and in that sense they have to have the conviction that what they do will help Cuba, now and always.
