Cuban Oriente Artwork Now On Display At Nuance Galleries

The rich heritage of Eastern Cuba as seen through the eyes of 13 Cuban artists will be on display at Nuance Galleries in South Tampa and St. Petersburg through the end of August.

Nuance has acquired a collection of nearly 300 paintings and woodcuts by the artists and is now exhibiting a portion of the collection.

The collection was once the basis of an 18-city national traveling exhibit of Cuban art called "Cuba Oriente: Contemporary Painting from Eastern Cuba." The exhibit of about 60 paintings toured the United States from 2003-07, the longest touring collection of contemporary Cuban art in the U.S.

The tour was extended twice due to popular demand and was viewed by more than 200,000 visitors.

The Oriente - or eastern - part of Cuba is one of the first settled areas on the island. It is Cuba's largest province and contains early settlements by both Spaniards and Asians, and later by Africans. The influence of all these cultures is evident in the collection.

The extensive and stylisticaly diverse collection includes realistic portraits and landscapes along with abstracts. It reflects both the social issues and the beauty of this remote region of Cuba.

Artists include a former museum director, professors and graduates of the regions art academies. Their paintings grace numerous museum and private collections worldwide.