The figure of Commander in Chief Fidel Castro has historically been an inspiration for countless people who have sought to pay tribute to him, and graphic humor is one of those artistic spaces that have paid tribute to him.
Since this Tuesday, an exhibition of 27 caricatures made of him adorns the halls of the Union of Journalists of Cuba, as part of the activities of the
1st International Biennial of Political Humor, which has been held in the Cuban capital since June 15. Alta Fidelidad is the name of the exhibition organized by Estudios Ares, to commemorate the birth of the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution.
According to Arístides Hernández (Ares), the cartoons date from the 1950s to the present day, and are, in general, publications from media outlets such as El Caimán Barbudo, Juventud Rebelde, Granma, Dedeté, Bohemia, Zigzag, Revolution and The World.
Alongside this exhibition, there were other spaces for exchange around graphic humour, a universe in constant development, in which new socialisation platforms have given rise to other communicative proposals that, while maintaining the same objective of raising awareness through laughter, do not use the same techniques as traditional caricatures and strokes by graphic artists.
Under this concept, the videoconference Political humor and communication in the 21st century was held, in which authors and scholars of the subject from both Cuba and Argentina shared experiences on the creation and dissemination of graphic humor through social networks. The Argentine professor of Communication, Fernanda Ruiz, explained that the digital territory has its own laws and characteristics, in which publications such as memes have gained great popularity in recent years.
They also talked about the need for people to see their lives reflected through humor, whatever the problem it deals with, since, when violence subdues, humor can be a liberating force.
On the other hand, his fellow countryman Javier Romero, with extensive experience in the creation of memes linked to politics and positioning on social networks, exemplified, through the use of his own page, how any topic can be used to generate humorous content and mix it with the world of politics.
Other spaces in the capital offer their spaces to the Biennial. In the Gallery l, of the University of Havana (uh), the exhibition Searching for the Meollo was inaugurated. In total, the exhibition, sponsored by the National Council of Plastic Arts, is made up of 26 works by 15 of the best and most eminent plastic artists in the country, among whom René de la Nuez, José Gómez Fresquet (Frémez ), Sandra Ramos, Ramiro Zardoyas and Arístides Hernández (Ares).
