Shining a Light on Cuban Photography

Art collector and philanthropist Madeleine Plonsker discusses her collection of contemporary Cuban photographs and the art scene in Cuba. She’s joined by Nelson Ramirez de Arellano Conde, artist and director of Fototeca de Cuba, and photographer Alejandro Perez Alvarez. There’s an exhibition of Plonsker's collection opening March 26 at the Robert Mann Gallery. The exhibition will travel to Cuba in May. The book The Light in Cuban Eyes: Lake Forest College’s Madeleine P. Plonsker Collection of Contemporary Cuban Photography contains more than 170 works from her collection, which focuses on the period beginning in 1992, when the former Soviet Union withdrew support and Cuba fell into a time of deprivation and hardship.

José Julián Martí. Untitled, 2006. Plata/gelatina. 12 x 16."

(© Lake Forest College Press/Courtesy of the publisher)

Arien Chang Castán. Untitled, 2009. Plata/gelatina. 10x15."

(© Lake Forest College Press/Courtesy of the publisher)

The Light in Cuban Eyes.

(Lake Forest College/Courtesy of the publisher)