Cundo Bermúdez at the MDC Freedom Tower

Miami Dade College opens its Gallery Season at the Freedom Tower with an Exhibition of the Works of Late Cuban Modern Master Cundo Bermúdez

Cundo was one of the first Cuban Modernists to be collected by the Museum of Modern Art as two of his nine paintings exhibited in the landmark Cuban Paintings exhibition in 1944 were acquired. Exhibition Dates: Sept. 4 – Nov. 7 Exhibition hours: Tuesdays: Fridays, noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Place: The Freedom Tower at Miami Dade College 600 Biscayne Blvd., Downtown Miami For more information, please contact: MDC’s Art Gallery System at 305-237-7186 or at galleries@mdc.edu

Cundo in his studio.

Miami, Sept. 3, 2009 –The Miami Dade College (MDC) Art Gallery System (AGS) officially opens its art gallery season by paying tribute to one of Cuba’s greatest artists, the late master Cundo Bermúdez, with the exhibition Under a Brilliant Sun: Cundo Bermúdez into the 21st Century at its National Historic Landmark Freedom Tower Starting Sept. 4. The exhibition runs through Nov. 7 and is made possible by Bank of America. The exhibition will honor his fertile career and his contribution to modern art by highlighting an outstanding selection of more than 100 paintings, drawings and sculpture, including an important part of his latest artworks never shown in an exhibition of this magnitude. Cundo Bermúdez, one of the last members of the important Cuban Vanguard movement, died on October 30, 2008 at the age of 94. He had called Miami home for the last twenty years of his life and was painting and drawing up until the end. Cundo was one of the first Cuban Modernists to be collected by the Museum of Modern Art as two of his nine paintings exhibited in the landmark Cuban Paintings exhibition in 1944 were accessioned. He was a very prolific artist who lived for his art. Only music rivaled this passion of his and he was known to paint and draw while listening to favorite works by famous Cuban composers. It is, therefore, not surprising that one of the works for which Cundo is best known – at least in Miami – is the wonderful mural he designed for Miami’s Center for the Performing Arts (now the Arsht Center for the Performing Arts). Designed during the years 1997-1999, it heralded a new phase for Cundo as he entered the 21st century determined to create a body of work for a new era. Approximately half of this exhibition is devoted to these works – a testament to the artist’s remarkably strong will to create. Over the more than 70 years of a long and illustrious career, Bermudez had accomplished so much. From participation in the groundbreaking MoMa exhibit of 1944 to the completion of major public commissions to representation in major public and private collections, Bermudez was one of the leading figures in 20th Century Cuban art. “We are honored to be the site of the first major exhibition of Cundo’s work following his passing. It’s especially moving to pay tribute to this great artist at the Freedom Tower,” said MDC President Dr. Eduardo J. Padrón. “I want to thank Bank of America and the college’s art gallery system team for making this exhibition possible.” Under a Brilliant Sun: Cundo Bermúdez into the 21st Century honors the prolific career of Bermúdez and his contributions to modern art by showcasing a selection of works that includes some of his latest and featuring pieces never shown in exhibitions. This exhibition highlights a considerable body of work created by Bermúdez in the last decade of his life when he called Miami home. “Meeting Cundo and watching him work was one of the highlights of this author’s curatorial career and I am honored to have had the opportunity to spend time with him. It is not often that an art historian is able to meet an artist whose career spanned so many years.” said art historian, researcher and curator of the exhibition Ruth Grim. Cundo Bermúdez is part of a generation of artists that reshaped and gave new directions to art in Latin America like the depictions of daily life of their own rounded existences and the use of new concepts in the linear treatment of the figure. These approaches are common in artists like Diego Rivera, Rufino Tamayo, José Clemente Orozco in México; Fernando de Szyszlo and Ricardo Grau in Perú; Joaquín Torres-García and Gonzalo Fonseca in Uruguay; Tarsila do Amaral in Brazil; Emilio Pettoruti, Juan del Prete and Gyula Kusice in Argentina and Armando Reverón in Venezuela. “This unique exhibition is a point of departure to explore the many other elements of painting that were not only important to Cundo but also to the evolution of Cuban and Latin American art through modernism”. Said Jorge Luis Gutierrez, Director of MDC Art Gallery System. “This exhibition provides a complete narrative to the many facets of his remarkable accomplishments.” As MDC now serves as the proud steward of the Freedom Tower, thanks to its donation to the college by Pedro Martin and family, it is using the building as a significant educational and cultural center. In the recent years since MDC acquired it, the iconic building has been used for other major art exhibitions, including showcasing the works of great artists such as Salvador Dalí, Goya, Leonardo Da Vinci, Janet Cardiff, Carlos Alfonso and Wendy Wischer among others. ABOUT ARTIST Born in Havana in 1914, Bermúdez was a founding member of Cuba’s Association of Painters and Sculptors. He led the tide of modern Cuban art in the 1940s and 1950s drawing from the people, landscape, music and political climate around him. He led the continued modernization of Cuban art during the 1940s and 1950s and on canvas, synthesized the character and national identity of his homeland through the color and luminosity of its iconic people, sites and musical scenes. His works have been exhibited across the globe. He passed away at 94 on Oct. 30, 2008, at his home in the Westchester neighborhood of Miami-Dade County. EXHIBITION CATALOGUE Accompanying the exhibition will be a publication featuring color reproductions, with text by art historian and curator of the exhibition Ruth Grim, and introductions by art historian Vivian Donnell Rodriguez, Executive Director of Cultural Affairs at MDC and Jorge Luis Gutierrez, Director and Chief Curator of MDC Art Gallery System. ORGANIZATION The Miami Dade College Art Gallery System proudly presents the lifetime work of this great modernist master as part of is arts program oriented to welcome and engage all visitors by offering personal, extraordinary experiences that connect art and ideas to stimulate the thriving, creative community that is Miami. The Mission of the Miami Dade College Art Gallery System is to encourage the appreciation and understanding of art and its role in society through direct engagement with original works of art and art-related creative processes. The AGS organizes exhibitions and educational programs to offer enjoyment and encourage inquiry, while building and preserving its collections in trust for future generations. With a system of seven art galleries throughout Miami Dade and the art spaces at the iconic Freedom Tower in Downtown Miami, it is the largest art network in Florida. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Under a Brilliant Sun: Cundo Bermúdez into the 21st Century exhibition is made possible by Bank of America. We also wish to thank Ramón and Nercys Cernuda invaluable guidance and logistical help. Conrado Basulto Jr. for his ideas and for sharing his wonderful collection of Cundo’s 21 century art and to his father Conrado Basulto Sr.; to Víctor Gallegos for fielding calls and setting appointments with collectors and photographers with his uplifting humor and patience. Thanks to Mr. Sergio García for is generous support to the conferences and education program. Special thanks to the generous lenders who have shared their treasured Cundo works with the public. Many of them wish to remain anonymous but we wish to thank the others by name: Conrado Basulto, Nercys and Ramón Cermuda, Sergio García, Jesús Fernández- Torna, Jorge Correa, Mr. and Mrs.Isaac Matz, Jaime and Sandra Birmaher, Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Rudman, Alfredo Martínez, Elvira and Jorge Pupo, Ray Rodríguez, Jessica Reina Fernández, Ruben Cruz and Family, Mariana Martínez, Andrés Maurette, Homero and Antonietta González, Tony Argiz, Miguel D’Juan and to Michael Spring and Miami-Dade Art in Public Places. Media contacts: Juan Mendieta, MDC director of communications, 305-237-7611, jmendiet@mdc.edu, or Tarnell Carroll, 305-237-3359, tcarroll@mdc.edu; Sue Arrowsmith, 305-237-3710, sue.arrowsmith@mdc.edu; or Alejandro Rios, 305-237-7482, arios1@mdc.edu For special hours, guided tours and education events and programs please contact: MDC Art Gallery System: T 305-237.7186 – 305-2377700 or galleries@mdc.edu - www.mdc.edu		Click on images to enlarge Mujer Peinando a su amante. 1945 Freedom Tower Freedom Tower Gallery Freedom Tower

(Info via Artnexus)