`Sexypink~Belkis Ayón Manso (1967-1999) Cuban (thanks earthquake)
Belkis Ayón Manso (January 23, 1967 – September 11, 1999) was a Cuban artist and lithographer. Her work was based on Afro-Cuban religion, combining the myth of Sikan and the traditions of the Abakuá, a men’s secret society. She was considered a pioneer in the printmaking world as her prints and collographs feature dark silhouettes and ghostly-white figures. Manso uses haunting imagery such as snakes, goats, and empty almond-shaped eyes that stare out at the viewer. The Cuban printmaker mysteriously took her own life in 1999.
Belkis Ayón Manso studied at San Alejandro Academy in Havana, Cuba (1986) and received her Bachelor’s degree in Engraving from the Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Havana, Cuba (1991). She held residencies at the Tyler School of Art, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA; the Bronski Center, Philadelphia College of Art, Philadelphia, PA; and Benson Hall Gallery, Rhode Island School of Design, RI. Manso has been exhibited internationally in several museums and galleries. She has also participated in several Biennials such as the Havana Biennal, Bharat Bhavan International Biennial of Prints, India; The First International Print Biennial, Maastricht, Holland, and the San Juan Biennial of Latin American and Caribbean Engraving, among others. The artist’s work is included in several collections worldwide, such as the National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana Cuba; the National Museum of Engraving, Buenos Aires, Argentina; the Afrika Museum, Berg en Dal, Holland; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA; and the Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, among others. She most recently had her first U.S. museum retrospective of her work at the Fowler Museum at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA (2016).
