Four artists have faced pressure from the authorities
Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, one of the arrested artists. Source: Artforum.
The official Havana Biennial kicks off in Cuba while the Cuban government attacks independent artists who protest against Decree 349 that criminalises independent artistic activity, according to Artforum.
Four artists have been targeted by the authorities. Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, the organiser of the alternative #00Bienal de La Habana, has been arrested three times.
On April 4, police banned him from participating in any biennial-related events.
On April 12, he was arrested again along with two other artists. They were going to stage a performance, which was a tribute to Cuban national Daniel Llorente was raised an American flag during a May Parade in Havana. He spent four days in custody without charges.
He was arrested again on April 16, one day after the release.
Artists Amaury Pacheco and Michel Matos were also detained by the police. Artist, curator and writer Coco Fusco was denied entry to the country. She said: “I find it disturbing that it takes beheadings, stoning, and long prison sentences to get most people in the art world to protest censorship and repression of artists. Violence is not reducible to physical aggression. Creativity, imagination, and hope die slow deaths in a country where any expression of dissent is criminalised.”
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