The genius of Wifredo Lam

« Wilfredo Lam, c’est aussi l’âme de ce temps dans son combat pour la justice, pour la libération des réalités longtemps opprimée», Max-Pol Fouchet

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I'm in London this morning, on my way to Belfast tonight, I took a few hours to linger in one of the best places in Europe, the Tate Modern. While our continent is politically in turmoil, what a comfort art can be! 

Wifredo Lam had an adventurous, courageous, artistic and devoted life, full of meaning and dedication. The powerfully lively force of his paintings are unmatched to this day... He also fought for a more soulful view on the world, for his freedom and others' and for his ideas in a time of pure political drama.

Born in Cuba in 1902 of a Chinese father and mixed-raced mother, he lived in Spain, France, the US and Italy, also travelling to Haiti and Switzerland... 

Here are a few illustrations I gathered (pictures are not allowed), and details about the exhibition below:

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Wifredo Lam (1902 - 1982)

Surrealist painter born in Sagua la Grande, Cuba, of a Chinese father and a mother of mixed African, Indian and European origin. Studied at the Academy of San Alejandro in Havana 1920-3, then went in 1924 to Madrid where he worked in the studio of Fernando Alvarez de Sotomayor, the Director of the Prado, and also in the evenings at the Free Academy. 

Left Spain in 1938 after taking part in the defence of Madrid, and moved to Paris. First one-man exhibition in Paris at the Galerie Pierre Loeb 1939. Friendship with Picasso, who enthusiastically encouraged him, and with Breton and the Surrealists. Became interested in African sculpture. Fled in 1941 to Martinique with Breton, Masson and Lévi-Strauss, then returned to Cuba where his work was influenced by savage rituals and the tropical jungle. Visited Haiti in 1945 and 1946 and discovered the Voodoo cult; later in 1946 met Gorky and Duchamp in New York and returned to Paris. 1947-52 in Cuba, New York and Paris; left Cuba in 1952 to live in Paris. 

Since 1960 has also worked regularly at Albissola Marina, Italy. Awarded the Guggenheim and Marzotto Prizes 1964-5. Lived in Paris and Albissola Marina.

Published in:
Ronald Alley, Catalogue of the Tate Gallery's Collection of Modern Art other than Works by British Artists, Tate Gallery and Sotheby Parke-Bernet, London 1981, pp.404-5

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TATE MODERNEXHIBITION

THE EY EXHIBITION: WIFREDO LAM

UNTIL 8 JANUARY 2017

Wifredo Lam’s distinctive style shook the assumptions of western Modernism. His distinctive paintings introduced the symbolism of his Cuban roots and defined a new way of painting for a post-colonial world. As he travelled in Europe and North and South America, he was a witness to twentieth century political upheaval – including the Spanish Civil War, the evacuation of artists and intellectuals from France with the onset of World War II, and the new Cuba borne of the Revolution.

Born in Cuba in 1902, Lam’s mother was of Spanish and African heritage, and his father was Cantonese Chinese. After eighteen years in Europe, Lam returned to Cuba and rediscovered the local African traditions that transformed his work. Closely connected to movements such as Cubism and Surrealism and artists and writers such as Pablo Picasso, André Breton, Asger Jorn, Lucio Fontana and Aimé Césaire, his unique work spans continents and traditions.

Throughout his long career, his work addressed themes of social injustice, nature and spirituality, that challenged prevailing attitudes held by western artists about other cultures.

His work continues to bring a historical perspective to contemporary issues. This exhibition celebrates Lam’s life and work and confirms his place at the centre of global art history.

Watch the couple of videos on the Tate's website: http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/wifredo-lam

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Wifredo Lam widely collaborated with the surrealists' movement and with French poets, among whom, the unique René Char.

This give the illustrated series of texts named Contre une maison sèche, published in Paris by Jean Hugues, in 1975. An in-folio oblong (383 x 545 mm) with 9 "eaux-fortes originales hors texte de Wifredo Lam".

Wifredo Lam also worked with stateless exiled poet Ghérasim Luca, born in Romania and member of the surrealist movement in France. They produced together a magnificent artwork around Luca's poems and Lam's painting named Apostroph'Apocalypse.

So very inspiring...


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More on the Wifredo Lam's Tate exhibition here: http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/ey-exhibition-wifredo-lam/room-guide-introduction