José Manuel Fors (Havana, 1956) is one of the most respected names in the Cuban artistic panorama. Fors graduated from San Alejandro National Academy of Fine Arts in 1976 and the Institute of Museology of Havana in 1986, and he owns a poetry that oscillates between the great history and the individual’s daily life. There is in his artworks the anthropological vocation of understanding human nature, of reconstructing humanity’s resume beginning from the smallest fragments. Look for him in the effort to be placed in the cracks –perhaps dismissed–, of human nature. Member of the “Cuban art Renaissance” generation, this artist has appeared since the 80’s and until today, in numerous personal and group exhibitions, reaching our days with an unquestionable intergenerational influence and a creative prosperity still in full splendor. The dissimilar awards he has deserved throughout his career are evidence of it. His artworks are included in important collections in Cuba and abroad, among which it is essential to mention the Cuban National Museum of Fine Arts.
EDUCATION
- 1983 – 1986 Museology Institute, Havana
- 1972 – 1976 San Alejandro National Academy of Fine Arts, Havana
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2017
- Palimpsesto, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
2016
- Wide Shadow, Couturier Gallery, Los Angeles
2015
- El peso leve de todo lo creado, Collateral to the 11th Havana Biennial, Fortress San Carlos de la Cabaña, Havana
2014
- Entre la sombra y en la pared, Villa Manuela Gallery, Havana
2013
- Ciudad fragmentada, Museo del Ron, Havana
2012
- Pormenores, Collateral to the 11th Havana Biennial, Fortress San Carlos de la Cabaña, Havana
- Ciudad fragmentada, Krause Gallery, Foothill College, California
2011
- Fragments, PanAmerican ArtProjects, Miami
2008
- Objetos, La Casona Gallery, Havana
2006
- Objetos fotográficos, Galicia Auditorium, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Historias circulares, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- Círculos, Fototeca de Cuba, Havana
2004
- Las cartas, Latin American Gallery, Casa de las Américas, Havana
- Long Letters, Couturier Gallery, Los Angeles
2003
- Los objetos, Geukens & De ViI Contemporary Art Center, Belgium
2002
- Fallen Leaves, Galería Couturier, Los Angeles
2001
- Beyond Cuba, Mirages of Absence, José Manuel Fors and Rogelio López Marín (Gory), Beadleston Gallery, New York
1999
- Salón Nacional de Fotografía, Center for the Development of Visual Arts (CDAV), Havana
- José Manuel Fors, Cuban Photographer, Couturier Gallery, Los Angeles
1998
- Foto-Installatles, Geukens & De ViI Contemporary Art Center, Belgium
1997
- Las ventanas, La Acacia Gallery, Havana
- Los retratos, Collateral to the 6th Havana Biennial, Fortress San Carlos de la Cabaña, Havana
1996
- Hojarasca (Project El voluble rostro de la realidad), Fototeca de Cuba, Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, Havana
1995
- El paso del tiempo (Project Naturalezas conjuradas), Wifredo Lam Contemporary Art Center, Havana
1993
- Desde la tierra, La Otra Banda Gallery, Merida, Venezuela
- Terra mater, French Alliance, Chacaito Center, Caracas
1992
- Trabajos fotográficos, Fototeca de Cuba, Havana
1988
- La tierra, Plastic Arts and Design Provincial Center, Havana
- Golpes de vista, Provincial Museum, Villa Clara, Cuba
1983
- Acumulaciones, Culture House of Plaza, Havana
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2018
- La imagen sin límites, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
2015
- Contaminación, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- Photography in Cuba Today, Chazen Museum, Madison, Wisconsin
- Lens Work: Celebrating LACMA’s Experimental Photography at 50, LACMA, Los Angeles
2013
- Slick Art Fair, Uprising Art, Paris
- ARTHOUSTON, PanAmerican ArtProjects, Houston
- Lima Photo, Villa Manuela Gallery, Lima, Peru
- Almacenes afuera, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- Argentine Photography, PanAmerican ArtProjects, Miami
- Del otro lado del espejo, Servando Gallery, Havana
- Cubart: Contemporary Cuban Art, PanAmerican ArtProjects, New York
- Art Wynwood, PanAmerican ArtProjects, Miami
2012
- Estado Actual. Muestra colectiva de las vanguardias cubanas, La Acacia Gallery, Havana
- Las metáforas del cambio, Collateral to the 11th Havana Biennial, Factoría Habana, Havana
- HB, Collateral to the 11th Havana Biennial, Pabexpo, Havana
2011
- 50 en los 50 [Tribute to the 50th anniversary of the foundation of The Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC)], La Acacia Gallery, Havana
- Urbanitas, PanAmerican ArtProjects, Miami
- ARTMIAMI, PanAmerican ArtProjects, Miami
- Bienal de la Vasija 2011, Hispano American Culture Center, Havana
- PINTA, PanAmerican ArtProjects, London
- Cuban Vision, Metropolitan Pavilion, New York
- ARTLA, Los Angeles
2010
- Madrid mirada, 14 artistas latinoamericanos, Fototeca de Cuba, Havana
- Portugal Arte 10, 1st Art Biennial, Lisbon
- Feria Arte Contemporáneo del Rhur (CAR), Germany
- Art Basel, Claramatte Parkhaus, Basel
- Alicia Alonso Dances Here Tonight, Magnanmetz Gallery, New York
- Cuba Avant-Garde: Contemporary Cuban Art from the Farber Collection, Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami, Miami
- Encuentros, Sala Retiro, Caja Madrid, Madrid
- ARTLA, Los Angeles
2009
- Cronos, La Casona Gallery, Havana
- Madrid mirada, 14 artistas latinoamericanos, Cuenca Museum of Modern Art, Ecuador
- HB. Muestra de arte cubano contemporáneo, Collateral to the 10th Havana Biennial, Pabexpo, Havana
2008
- Subasta Habana, Galería Habana, Havana
- Madrid mirada, 14 artistas latinoamericanos, Círculo de Bellas Artes, Madrid; Contemporary Art and Design Museum of San Jose, Costa Rica; Contemporary Art Museum, Panama; Juan Vasconcelos National Library, Mexico D. F.; Visual Art Museum, Santiago de Chile
- ARCO’08, Madrid
- Cuban Art History from 1868 to Today, The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal
- Isla in continente. Arte cubano contemporáneo, Tegucigalpa Central American Biennial, Fundarte National Art Gallery, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
- Surrounded by Water: Expressions of Freedom and Isolation in Contemporary Cuban Art, Boston University Art Gallery, Boston
2007
- Cuba Avant-Garde: Contemporary Cuban Art from the Farber Collection, John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Florida
- Habanart à Québec, Quebec
- Homing Devices, Contemporary Art Museum, Tampa
2006
- Show & Tell: The Art of Time, Zimmer Children’s Museum, Los Angeles
- ARTEAMERICAS, Miami
- Arte de Cuba, Cultural Center of Brazil, Sao Paulo
- Subasta Habana, Galería Habana, Havana
2005
- Documenting Poetry: Contemporary Latin American Photography, Maier Museum of Art, Virginia
- En blanco y negro. Fotografía cubana contemporánea, San Lucas Gallery, Madrid
- Proyecto Espacios, Espacios Gallery, Madrid
- Subasta Habana, Galería Habana, Havana
- Juannio. Subasta de Arte Latinoamericano, National Museum of Modern Art, Merida, Guatemala
2004
- No Island is an Island: Contemporary Cuban Art, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia
- Subasta Habana, Galería Habana, Havana
2003
- Contemporary Art and the Art of Survival, Natalie and James Thompson Art Gallery, San Jose University, San Jose, California
- Subasta Habana, Galería Habana, Havana
- Subasta humanitaria, Casa de las Américas, Havana
2002
- Shifting Tides: Cuban Photography after the Revolution, Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago
- Subasta Habana, Galería Habana, Havana
2001
- Four Cuban Photographers, Couturier Gallery, Los Angeles
- Shifting Tides: Cuban Photography after the Revolution, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; Grey Gallery, New York
2000
- Vigovisións, 9th Photo Biennial, Vigo, Pontevedra, Spain
- Subasta humanitaria, Casa de las Américas, Havana
1999
- La huella múltiple, Center for the Development of Visual Arts (CDAV), Havana
- Metáforas / Comentarios. Artistas de Cuba, State University of San Francisco, San Francisco
- Lo real infatigable, Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, Center for the Development of Visual Arts (CDAV), Havana
1998
- ¿Cómo es posible ser cubano?, La Maison de l’Amérique Latine, Paris
- Fragmentos a su imán, Casa de las Américas, Havana
- Empreintes Cubaines, Chaillot National Theatre, Paris
- 20 Festival des 3 Continents, Oratory Chapel, Nantes
1997
- Contemporary Cuban Art, 33 Hazelton Avenue, Toronto
1996
- Fotografía cubana, Journalist Union of Russia, Moscow
- I Salón Nacional de Arte Ecológico, Varadero, Matanzas, Cuba
1995
- Relaciones peligrosas, Center for the Development of Visual Arts (CDAV), Havana
- Vestigios. Ego: un retrato posible, Center for the Development of Visual Arts (CDAV), Havana
- Naturaleza vive, Lost Steps Hall, National Capitol, Havana
- I Feria internacional de arte, Art Center, Mexico D. F.
- I Salón de Arte Cubano Contemporáneo (SACC), National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- Visioni, fotografía cubana de los 90, Spazio Italia, Milan
1994
- X Abril. Mes de la fotografía, Merida, Mexico
1993
- La nube en pantalones, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- Plástica cubana contemporánea de los ochenta, Chopo University Museum, Mexico D. F.
1992
- Fotografía cubana contemporánea, Florence, Italy
1991
- Nuevas adquisiciones contemporáneas, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
1988
- Jóvenes fotógrafos, Plastic Arts and Design Provincial Center, Havana
- Pintura cubana contemporánea, Tretiakov Gallery, Moscow
1987
- El árbol y la vida, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- Visiones del paisaje, Gallery of The Andes University, Merida, Venezuela
1986
- Pintura cubana actual, National Gallery of Contemporary Art, San Jose, Costa Rica
1985
- De lo contemporáneo, National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
1984
- Manipulación y alteración de la imagen fotográfica, Mexican Council of the Photography, Mexico D. F.
- Concurso internacional de carteles de cine, 23 y M Gallery, Havana
1983
- Encuentro de jóvenes artistas latinoamericanos, Casa de las Américas, Havana
1982
- Premio de fotografía cubana, 23 y M Gallery, Havana
1981
- Volumen I, International Art Center, Havana
- Trece artistas jóvenes, Galería Habana, Havana
- Sano y sabroso, 23 y M Gallery, Havana
- Cuban Posters, Drawing and Graphics from Cuba, New Delhi
1980
- I Salón de pintura Carlos Enríquez, International Art Center, Havana
1979
- Pintura fresca, Artist Residence, Havana; Art Gallery of Cienfuegos, Cienfuegos, Cuba
1978
- Exposición colectiva de dibujos, Galería Habana, Havana
AWARDS
2016
- National Award of Plastic Arts, Havana
2011
- Award, Bienal de la Vasija 2011, Havana
2007
- Special Docent Category of Consulting Professor in the Superior Institute of Art (ISA), Havana
2001
- Diploma for Artistic Merit, Superior Institute of Art (ISA), Havana
1999
- Distinction for the National Culture, Culture Ministry, Havana
1996
- Mention, I Ecologic Art National Salon, Varadero, Matanzas, Cuba
1989
- Gold Medal, 49th International Photographic Salon of Japan, Tokyo
1988
- Mention, 13 de Marzo Contest, L Gallery, Havana
1985
- Mention, 13 de Marzo Contest, L Gallery, Havana
COLLECTIONS
- The Museum of Contemporary Art (MoCA), Los Angeles
- Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Oregon
- Museum of Fine Arts, Caracas
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles
- Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- The Americas Museum, Managua, Nicaragua
- National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana
- The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
- University of Virginia Art Museum, Virginia
- Avistamientos Collection, Havana
- Vigo Council, Vigo, Spain
- Casa de las Américas, Havana
- Fototeca de Cuba, Havana
- Fototeca de Pachuca, Pachuca, Mexico
- National Council of Plastic Arts (CNAP), Havana
- The Pilara Foundation, California