October marks a string of events in Cuba, starting with Independence Day (Dia de la Independencia) on 10 October and ending with festivities on Cuba’s National Day of Culture (Jornada de la Cultura Cubana) on 20 October.
Both dates are related to events that took place in 1868. On 10 October 1868 there was a call for (1) independence from Spain and (2) The abolition of slavery in Cuba. Ten days later, independence soldiers (known as Mambises) had taken the city of Bayamo – and the song La Bayamesa, the current Cuban national anthem, was sung for the first time.
The V&A has close to 500 Cuban works in its collection, including hundreds of posters ranging from film and tourism advertisements, to independent artworks and works published by the Organization of Solidarity with the People of Asia, Africa and Latin America (OSPAAAL).
Here we present a few highlights from our collection of 1960s Cuban posters.
El Caso Morgan by Alfrédo Rostgaard advertises the showing in Cuba of the English comedy film ‘Morgan, a Suitable Case for Treatment’, directed by Karel Reisz. The film was released in 1966 in the UK and was presented at the Cannes Film Festival in the same year. This poster was issued by the Cuban Institute of Cinematic Art and Industry and is a colour screen print from 1967.
This poster was designed by the International Organization of Solidarity with the People of Asia, Africa and Latin America (OSPAAAL) for an international week of Tricontinental Solidarity in Cuba, 1968. The Tricontinental Conference was held in Havana, Cuba, in 1966, and brought together delegates from more than 80 countries in the Global South. ‘Tricontinental’ here refers to Asia, Africa and Latin America. This poster bears the words ‘this great humanity has said: ‘enough’!’
We are given a close-up view of a reverberating musical note in this colour screen print poster used to advertise the Popular Song Festival held in Cuba, 1967. It was produced by the National Council of Culture, Cuba.
Striking in its use of bold typography and bright – almost neon – colours, this poster was designed by Enríque Martínez in 1969 for OSPAAAL to celebrate and express solidarity with the Cuban Revolution. The Cuban National flag is at the centre of this poster, outlined in green, orange and yellow, helping to make it stand out. The OSPAAAL logo (a hand supporting a globe) is given a similar treatment, pictured here in green and orange. This is all alongside the poster’s main message: ‘Day of Solidarity with the Cuban Revolution’, which has been translated into the four languages, English, French, Arabic and Spanish.
This screen-printed poster by Muñoz Bachs advertises the Cuban film ‘The Adventures of Juan Quinquin’, directed by Julio Garcia Espinosa and dated 1967. The movie is based on the 1964 novel by Samuel Feijóo, Juan Quinquín in Pueblo Mocho.
OSPAAAL showed support for countries through solidarity day posters. This 1969 poster exemplifies a focus on a specific demographic within a country: Black Americans during the Civil Rights era. The family are depicted engaged in warfare. A woman crouches, holding a gun with her baby slung across her back, while a man aims his bow and arrow. The group is protected by the shade of a tree contained within the profile of a woman’s head.
OSPAAAL: Solidarity and Design is a free display of posters produced by the Organization of Solidarity with the People of Asia, Africa and Latin America between 1966 – 2019. On now at the V&A until 31 March 2023.
