The California / International Art Foundation presents Memoria: Cuban Art of the 20th Century, the first comprehensive publication on twentieth-century Cuban art. Although it was a period of great political and social development in Cuba, marked by significant turmoil and human suffering, Cuban artists never abandoned their heroic commitment to providing a mirror of Cuban society through their art. For the first time, more than 450 Cuban artists from 1902 to the present are united in this publication. Along with painting and sculpture, Memoria includes the work of naive artists, together with engraving, photography, graphic design, comic drawings, ceramics, illustrations, installations and performance art.

Memoria is a compilation of the most significant critical writing and historical text about Cuban art, by authors from around the world, considers the effect of economic, cultural, social and political phenomena on Cuban art. Reproductions of artistsÕ works are featured, along with critical commentary an extensive bibliography, of 1000 publications on Cuban art.

Memoria is accompanied by a CD, which contains a comprehensive biographic listing of Cuban artists. It unifies biographical material and references for each artist, including those who have developed their artistic careers outside Cuba. The extensive information in this volume will be indispensable to those with an interest in Cuban art.

Memoria draws much of its information from the valuable collection of material in the Jose Veigas Archive of Cuban Art in Havana, who is considered to be the single most comprehensive repository of information on Cuban artists, one of CubaÕs most precious cultural treasures. The book was written by Jose Veigas-Zamora, Cristina Vives Gutierrez, Adolfo V. Nodal, Valia Garzon and Dannys Montes de Oca.

The research development and production of Memoria has been supported by the J. Paul Getty Research Institute for the Study of Arts and Humanities, The Ford Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, The Reed Foundation, individual patrons, and countless cultural institutions in Cuba, The United States and internationally.

For more information about the book or to order a copy of Memoria, you can visit the website www.netropolitan.org.