‘YOU KNOW WHAT YOU WANT’ In a divisive time where its difficult to have open communication, art makes those conversations possible. El Espacio 23’s exhibition aims to elevate those conversations on an international scale, Alvarez said. The goal for art to strike a chord, Hanna added. In Miami, where Cuba’s legacy is felt everyday, that goal is within reach. “The mission of all of our shows, I think, is to enjoy art for its beauty, but also for its content,” Hanna said. “We want people to think and we want people to reflect not only on their own personal histories, but where they are within their own context.” The show’s namesake is a painting by Raúl Cordero, a Cuban-born artist who now lives in Mexico. At 16, while in art school in Cuba, he had stumbled upon a bunch of donated books in the library. The books were sorted into piles to be censored or approved. When nobody was looking, Cordero grabbed a random book from the top of the pile, shoved it into his backpack and ran home.
Miami Herald.
