Liudmila & Nelson
Absolut Revolution - La Isla

Absolut Revolution - La Isla

© 2002 Liudmila & Nelson

Absolut Revolution - La Isla
Absolut Revolution - La Isla
Artistactive Cuba, founded 1994
CultureCuban
Titles
  • Absolut Revolution - La Isla
  • Absolut Revolution - The Island
  • from the series Absolut Revolution
Date2002
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage (at open): 15 1/2 × 23 in. (39.3 × 58.4 cm)
Frame (outer): 22 13/16 × 30 7/8 × 1 1/4 in. (58 × 78.5 × 3.1 cm)
Credit LineThe Madeleine P. Plonsker Collection, Gift of Madeleine and Harvey Plonsker
Object number2024.260
Current Location
The Nancy and Rich Kinder Building
Gallery 314
On view

Explore Further

Department
Photography
Object Type
Description

The José Martí monument holds a powerful, symbolic place in the history and psyche of the nation. From its base, Fidel Castro routinely addressed vast crowds gathered in the expansive Plaza de la Revolución. Is Liudmila & Nelson’s imagining of a flooded Havana meant to represent the nation, battered by forces beyond its control, still standing strong, or a revolution that has sacrificed the lives of its people for its own survival? Where art and literature are scrutinized by official censors, it pays to retain plausible deniability, even in photography, a medium often thought to be unambiguously truthful.

 

El monumento a José Martí ocupa un un lugar sim- bólico y preponderante en la historia y el imaginario nacional. Desde su base, Fidel Castro solía dirigirse a inmensas multitudes en la Plaza de la Revolución. ¿Esta Habana inundada de Liudmila & Nelson será una metáfora de una nación firme afrontando fuerzas externas, o más bien un símbolo de una revolución que ha sacrificado vidas en pos de su propia supervivencia? En contextos donde el arte y la literatura están sometidos a la vigilancia de los censores es prudente mantener una posible ambigüedad, incluso en la fotografía, un medio a menudo considerado inequívocamente veraz.


ProvenanceMadeleine and Harvey Plonsker, Glencoe, Illinois; given to MFAH, 2024.

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.

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