By Lee Mergner

Venezuelan-born painter Jonathan Brender’s bright pointillism pieces have made him popular with collectors in the United States and Europe. The South Florida resident, who first received his artistic education in ceramics and sculpture, spoke with ABN contributor Lee Mergner at Spectrum Miami, where he contemplated light, inspiration, and the changing nature of art as a career.

Art Business News: Do you remember your first piece of work that others recognized?

Jonathan Brender: I do remember. The beginnings of my art were from a trip I took to Australia in the back country where the Aborigines live. I stayed there for two months learning their art of pointillism. They used to do big faces with a million dots—aborigine faces, maybe kangaroos. I was so amazed at their patience and how many points [it took]. I started modifying that art into [portraits of] modern icons. My first [pointillism piece] was a face of Bob Marley, which had immediate success in my exposition in London. Then I knew I had something going on, something different from other artists. I started pursuing that, and, in two years’ time, I started attending Spectrum and other shows, and it just skyrocketed.

I can only make 10 to 12 paintings a year because it takes that much time, and physically it takes a toll on my shoulders and on my fingers. Once I started selling out all my yearly productions or collections, I knew that I really had something special and different.

ABN: What drew you to that form?

JB: I think it’s the time-consuming aspect of each painting. I need that time consumption to maintain my mind in the same way. For me, working eight hours, 10 hours, 12 hours a day for a month and a half doing only points … keeps me from going insane.

ABN: For most people it would be the opposite! Do you listen to music while working?

JB: Yes, only classical and jazz. And, [contrary to] what people might think, I can’t drink a drop of alcohol when I’m painting because I cannot have my hands shake even just an itty bit. When I’m painting, I’m at my most sober time.

ABN: How has your work evolved over the years?

JB: I’ve been doing this for 15 years. It has evolved, first of all, in the number of dots I do. When I started out, I did 20,000 or 25,000 dots. Now, I’m up to 180,000 dots. Also, I’m incorporating a few UV tints and inks that work only in darkness or with a UV light. I’m also doing some geometrical forms that you can see only from far away, and, from near you can see only the dots. I think I’ve come a long way.

ABN: What is your relationship with the people who buy your art?

JB: Usually, nowadays, I don’t even meet my clients. When I started out, I sold them personally to each of my clients. Now, it has become somewhat of a real business, where my PR manager takes care of all the sales. It’s really strange when I meet the real buyer. And they’re mostly from Europe. I really don’t get to meet them personally, which is something I really would like to do.

ABN: Why has Europe been a better market for you?

JB: I was born in Venezuela, but I’m an American. The place to be historically for art, besides Europe, is America. I collect pop art from American artists, which is hugely collectible. But Europeans, I think, buy more art. I think Americans buy more expensive art but fewer pieces. But Europeans like the emerging artists. They’ll buy an entire collection of one emerging artist. It’s a different market. It’s really interesting—the chemistry between the European buyers and the American buyers. It’s totally different.

ABN: How has technology changed the business side for you?

JB: That’s something I’m still trying to adapt to. A hand-painting artist [like myself] doesn’t have the time for this new media—Facebook, Instagram, and whatever. You get to the point where you have to hire somebody to manage that. But if you don’t have sales, then you can’t manage that. So you’re without an arm or a leg. Thank God I do sell out my collections each year, so I have two people to take care of that. It’s a really important part of being an artist in this day.

ABN: Technology has changed things for the galleries, as well.

JB: Nobody walks into a gallery now unless they have bought from there before. Now you go online and you have 100 pages—Saatchi, Amazon, whatever—that specialize in handmade art. Now you don’t have to walk through three or five or eight galleries. Now you just go online and find whatever you’re looking for. People who buy art … have something on their mind that they really want to buy. They have to research. The technology now goes like the left hand with the right hand for the artists and their paintings.

ABN: But it’s hard to really experience the 3D and tactile aspects of art online. A JPEG is very different from a piece of art.

JB: On my website, you can see my paintings, but you can’t really appreciate each of the dots I do because it’s a digital image. You have to look at it closely. For me as an artist, it’s hard that people like to look first at the work on a computer. Art is supposed to be seen in real life and in the real light. But you either modify, or you die. You either keep up with the times, or you wither. It’s a fight between the old-school art that we love and cherish and the new age.

ABN: Light is a big issue for all art, but how does light affect your work?

JB: I only work with yellow light, and, interestingly enough, I can’t work with light hitting directly on the canvas. I need light to be from any of the sides, so I paint on a light shadow. It’s really different from other painters, who need natural light or white light. I need yellow light and [to be in the] shadows.

ABN: Why is that?

JB: It makes me measure the dots and the position of the dots better.

ABN: Like the filmmakers’ magic hour?

JB: Yes, I actually start at 7 a.m., and when the light gets heavy, I can’t paint anymore.

ABN: What was the last piece of art you saw from another artist that inspired you or struck you?

JB: I can’t think of any emerging artists that really wowed me recently, but I would say that my favorite artist in history is Jackson Pollock. At that date he started doing his style, it was a revolution. No one dared to do that. And the colors he used. It was so simple but yet so shocking. I think the first painting I saw of his was No. 203 or something. I remember my first paintings. I didn’t put names; I put numbers. He was my biggest influence, although my technique has nothing to with that. He was so bold and so risky. And I also identify with his personal life [laughs].

ABN: What do you get from coming to a show like Spectrum Miami or Artexpo New York?

JB: I have a great connection with Spectrum and with Artexpo. First of all, the organization is incredible. The friendliness, for it being an art event, is unbelievable. The networking I see here is really difficult to find in other places, mainly because the ambiance here is not that of old-school galleries. Everybody here is young. There are new galleries. Everybody is on the same page. Nobody thinks they are bigger or better than anybody. Everybody here is the same. This attracts me the most [to] the Redwood shows.

The post Point Man appeared first on Art Business News.

By Isabel Thottam

A team of award-winning professionals, Michael and Elaine Joseph focus on current trends and technology to assist artists worldwide through their company, Artblend Inc. They use Artblend as a way to examine and redefine the traditional criteria for artists to run a successful art business. Artblend operates as a full-service, art-related business offering gallery and art fair exhibitions, marketing and promotion, book publishing, and magazine profiles to emerging, midcareer, and established artists from around the world.

With Elaine as the president and editor-in-chief and Michael as the vice president and publisher, this duo has established a new paradigm in the art industry. Elaine and Michael met more than 27 years ago and have been together ever since. They were both highly successful during the 1980s with individual careers in the music industry. Elaine established herself with one of the top-ranking national record store companies, doing store management, promotions, marketing, and buying. Michael owned his own stage lighting and concert production company and an artist and tour management company that worked with local, regional, and national talent.

As the digital age came to fruition in the late 1990s, the music industry began to change, and Michael left his company to move to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to pursue his passion for fine art photography. Elaine then joined as his business manager, and in 2005 they opened Artists Haven Gallery to exhibit and market fine art photography. Over the next eight years, they expanded the business, opening Ocean Wave Media and Ocean Wave Photography Gallery and launching Artblend magazine. In 2012, they merged their companies, creating Artblend Inc., and moved into a brand-new, 6,200-square-foot facility. Since entering the business more than a decade ago, they’ve welcomed the occasion to share with their community, build lasting relationships, benefit charities, and support the arts on a global scale.

Michael and Elaine recently shared their story and advice for successfully managing an art business using technology and media.

Art Business News: Can you explain a bit about how the idea for Artblend came into being and what aspect of the business you each focus on?

Elaine Joseph: The idea of establishing our art business happened because I was managing Michael’s photography career and artists were constantly asking me if I’d be interested in managing them. We enjoyed a lot of success with his career using our tactics and methods to get him in front of serious art buyers. The real strength came from exhibiting at the major art fairs and online marketing.

Michael Joseph: In our company, Elaine operates what I consider to be the front of house. She is truly the COO and CFO [chief operating officer and chief financial officer]. Every successful company needs that rock. Since I am an artist at heart, it is natural that my position is primarily working one on one with the artists to do consulting and career coaching. I would be remiss if I did not mention our invaluable gallery manager, Sarah Emmets, who so wonderfully and faithfully handles all the day-to-day coordinating and logistics.

ABN: What inspired you to want to help more artists in the areas of marketing, branding, web design, and the like?

EJ: It was obvious to us both that many artists did not know where to turn to get professional help, especially from people they would find trustworthy, reliable, and sincere. Our experience in the music industry was not much different from that of the art industry. We are still dealing with talent, and talent needs to be managed. With management comes responsibility. It is really essential to understand that business is about building a lasting relationship. In our line of work, if done correctly, the line of where being a client ends and friendship begins is blurred.

ABN: How exactly does Artblend help artists? What do you look for in the artists you work with?

MJ: When I speak with artists, it is easy for them to relate to me. They will succeed if they develop a long-term strategy and plan for success. We never judge art. Art is subjective. For us, it is more about the individual and the building of a lasting relationship. We look for ambition, good communication skills, and candor. With that said, what we look for in an artist in one word is passion.

EJ: We can best serve artists by listening to their needs, desires, and goals. As a full-service art company, we are involved in many aspects of the art industry. We have formulated a plan for success devised from the history of Michael’s career as an artist. We have a system called the “six spheres of success.” This is a strategy for attracting art buyers through marketing and exhibiting. It encompasses all the techniques and tools that I used to launch Michael’s career.

ABN: How many artists do you work with?

EJ: Over the last 10 years we have worked with hundreds of artists from around the world. Artblend is a multifaceted art company with much to offer. In our art gallery, we represent between 35 and 45 artists exhibiting with us full time. Our biannual publication, Artblend magazine, regularly has 20 to 26 artists featured per issue. Our involvement at multiple art fairs each year involves us working with 20 to 40 artists per show. On top of that, you can add on dozens more artists that we do book publishing and marketing for.

ABN: Can you share a success story from one of your clients?

MJ: Some years ago, an emerging photographer approached us. He had a clear vision of what he wanted to accomplish, and he had a budget and was willing to invest. One of the first things we did was introduce him to one of our top corporate art consultants. In less than two months, he landed a huge commission job with her for five times the amount of what he had invested with us. Today, he is a writer, an art consultant, and the owner of a popular online art gallery. And, yes, his photography career is flourishing.

ABN: What social media platforms should artists be using, and how?

EJ: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn are the crucial ones. They should be posting announcements of any events, exhibits, and happenings they are involved in. Keep your audience interested and following you by posting new work. By sharing something of interest that is beneficial to others, this will create more reciprocity.

ABN: What are most artists doing wrong with their marketing and branding?

EJ: I am not one to pick out things that are wrong. That’s being negative. I like to rather focus on the positive. What they can do is to be consistent and keep it simple and clean. The goal is to develop a synonymous name and art recognition. You have only one opportunity to make a first and lasting impression. You have to stand out and remain above your competition because, in the art world, everyone within three feet of you is your competition.

ABN: How do you help an artist who is starting from scratch, truly working from the ground up?

MJ: That is an area I know very well. When I was starting out as a black-and-white architectural fine art photographer, it was very difficult. I had far more rejections than acceptances. I know a lot about perseverance, commitment, and how to take constructive criticism. For those artists who are more advanced, of course, there is still plenty that we can do to help them as well.

ABN: What are some successful things you’ve seen artists do on social media?

EJ: I like the interesting way in which some artists have created contests, with voting and such. This is wonderful because it can provide the artist with useful data to evaluate and adjust to. As an example, they can track what images, color trends, sizes, and subjects are the most popular. It is much like how a corporate business might use a focus group.

ABN: Do you build the websites for each artist? Do you manage them, or does the artist?

MJ: We develop and build websites for artists as part of our services. It is essential today that an artist has a very good website. Their website should be “responsive,” which means it can be viewed on all devices, such as a phone, a tablet, a TV, and a PC. We can manage or they can self-manage their website. We use current WordPress technology that is fairly simple and easy to use.

ABN: What are some effective ways for artists to use their websites?

MJ: A website is an instant showcase of who you are and what you are all about. It is open 24/7, 365 days a year. Anyone can go online at any time and check you out, from anywhere in the world. It is so cost-effective and one of the best investments an artist can ever make. We discover over 90 percent of our artists from viewing websites. Conversely, nothing is more of a turnoff to us than a bad website, meaning one that is not functioning properly or has technical glitches. If you have those problems, forget about it; you lost us in the first 15 seconds.

ABN: How have you found video to be effective for artists’ brands? Why types of content do you use video to promote?

MJ: Video is the hottest medium today. Especially when it is on your website, video can increase your search engine optimization (SEO) radically into a top ranking position on Google and Yahoo. YouTube is also a phenomenon!

ABN: What are three tips you’d give to artists who are just starting out and who want to build their brand or promote themselves?

EJ: You must invest in your career for others to invest in you or even notice you. Successful people want to do business with other successful people. Building an art career is a marathon, not a sprint.

The post Full Service appeared first on Art Business News.

By Nicki Porter

It’s one thing to create art with good intentions: to raise awareness for a cause, grant a voice to the oppressed, or just bring a little light into the world. But acting on those good intentions is another thing entirely.

For Kansas City natives Christina Eldridge and Dawn Taylor, it wasn’t enough to merely talk about bringing change to the world. Both women had journeyed to Africa and seen firsthand a basic human need that wasn’t being met: access to clean, safe drinking water.

So they co-founded Red Dirt Shop, an online marketplace that offers “goods for good.” All products for sale on the site—cellphone cases, water bottles, T-shirts—feature designs by working artists, and every sale provides an entire year of access to safe water for an individual in need, thanks to the store’s partnership with the nonprofit Water.org.

Red Dirt Shop built its business model on trust in a growing group of consumers who appreciate quality products and want to make a difference in the world. Eldridge and Taylor bet that these consumers would be willing to pay a higher price for premium products that support a worthy cause.

It was a smart bet. Red Dirt Shop has been a remarkable—and profitable—success. In 2014, the shop began selling products made by artisans in Guatemala and Kenya, offering job creation and fair wages in addition to clean-water access.

Eldridge recently discussed how the two entrepreneurs successfully combined art and social change.

Art Business News: How did you come up with the idea for Red Dirt Shop?

Christina Eldridge: While working as a fundraiser for a major hospital system, I started volunteering as a director for medical mission trips to Mali, West Africa. While I’ve been lucky to travel internationally quite a bit, this was my first time to go into a country with a purpose, work alongside the local people, and step into their shoes. What I saw were people who were impoverished, uneducated, and unhealthy. I also saw [that] they were joyous, ingenious, clever, and resourceful, and had an enviable sense of family and community.

While poverty is incredibly complex and the reasons for it vary from region to region and person to person, I saw problems I felt I could partner with local people on and make a difference. And it wasn’t about handouts or giving things away; it was [about] finding ways to help these people raise themselves out of poverty. The two areas I thought I could make a difference in were water access and job creation. Water is a basic human right, but nearly 750 million people don’t have access [to it]. If people aren’t healthy, they can’t take care of themselves. Second, it was made crystal clear to me that people want jobs and the dignity of taking care of their families themselves. No one wants to live off of handouts.

I wanted to start something that could scale and grow quickly, and that wasn’t charity; it’s commerce. So Red Dirt Shop is a lifestyle fashion-and-accessories company that donates a year of clean-water access for someone in need with each product sold. Additionally, half our products are now made by artisans in developing communities that are paid a fair wage and are working in safe, healthy conditions.

ABN: Why did you choose providing access to clean drinking water as your cause?

CE: On my first trip to Mali, we traveled to a very small, remote village to have a day clinic. The first person brave enough to step outside the village wall was a little boy around [age] 5 or 6. We walked slowly toward each other, and I could see he was just wearing a ratty T-shirt. As I got closer, I saw [that] his face was drawn, his eyes were lifeless, and he had diarrhea running down his legs. It didn’t take us long to figure out he had a water-borne illness. The village was using an open-top well, in which … the water was a milky brown. Their hand-pump well had broken some time ago.

Can you imagine being this boy’s mother, and your options are to give him water that will almost surely make him ill or let him thirst? As a mother myself, it broke my heart. We found out it would take about $800 to fix their pump, and I was able to raise the money within a day back home. The next year, I went back to the same village, and the boy, Famoussa, ran out to hug me. He was healthy, with full cheeks and bright eyes. It was one of the most memorable moments of my life.

When I knew I wanted to support water access with Red Dirt Shop, I decided to support Water.org. It’s one of the most forward-thinking and respected nonprofits focused on water and sanitation in the world. And amazingly, it is located right here in Kansas City, and I knew a number of people working there. I love their solutions to the water crisis and am happy to financially support them.

ABN: What made you decide to sell custom, artist-created designs? Why was artist involvement important to you?

CE: Well, it’s one thing to create a business idea, and it’s another to make one that is different

and attractive to people. We decided on cellphone covers as our first product: something that almost everyone buys for their smartphone, has a low price point, and is very visible to others. To make it distinctive, we decided to involve artists. Kansas City has an incredibly fertile arts community, and the artists are extremely collaborative with one another. When we started approaching artists—some we knew, some we didn’t—almost all of them said yes; they loved the idea of using their talents in a commercial product that could also help others. Additionally, we didn’t ask them to do it for free. We licensed their artwork for a period of time. Our artist partners have been incredible. They help share the product with their fan base, which is marketing for us, and vice versa. Some have just been fun to work with; others have become good friends.

ABN: How do you balance making a profit with philanthropy? Can you have both?

CE: You have to have profit, or you can’t survive. We are an investor-backed business, so we had to sell the idea that doing good also does good for a business. Nielsen has released three reports in the last five years surveying tens of thousands of people around the world. They show increasing demand for “do-good” companies and show that people are willing to pay more for such products.

With our products, we had to build the cost of doing good into the retail price. That [goal] may take some consumer education because most of the supply chains in the fashion industry are “dirty,” with people along the way being paid too little or the environment taking the cost. Consumers need to know the true cost of their fashion.

ABN: Talk about your decision to sell artisan-created products.

CE: It was always a goal to eventually add artisan-made products once the company got on its feet. It was adding another genre of art to our goods. I sought groups that had the skills and resources that I could work with on designs. That took a lot of time and [led us down] a lot of dead-end trails. But the artisans I’ve found thus far have been incredible to work with. It’s incredibly gratifying to know who is making your products, see what having a job does for them and their families, and then be able to share that story with your customer.

ABN: How do these products get selected for inclusion in the shop?

CE: The artisan products have the same standards as [goods from] any other supplier: quality products, timely delivery, good communication. Right now, we’re carrying beautiful leather bags and other accessories from Kenya. The quality is above reproach. We also just started working with a small village there that makes gorgeous blankets from organic cotton they grow, spin, and weave. And there’s a women’s co-op in Guatemala that uses their skills in backstrap weaving and fabric sewing.

I work with the groups on creating contemporary designs with the skills and resources they have. I don’t want to be like Ten Thousand Villages, which sells the indigenous products you might find in a local market. The products we have are loved for their beauty and design, and the fact that they are made by artisans in developing communities is a delightful surprise.

ABN: What has reception been like for the shop, in terms of both artists and consumers?

CE: Incredible! The visual artists [enjoy it for] different reasons: they like the interesting vehicles their art is placed on, such as phone cases, water bottles, and apparel; what their art is supporting; and that they are fairly paid for the licensing. I think the artisan groups like seeing what they make sold in America and [having it] be so well-received.

Consumers are ready to spend their money on quality products that aren’t harming people or the planet and support companies that use their power for good. They also love the story they can tell when someone compliments them.

ABN: Have you found marrying social impact and art to be a good match?

CE: I think that people who like our products love art, and when they choose artful products, they’re choosing to represent who they are. That [idea] ties in with the social impact as well; they buy products they can stand behind. Our customers buy our products—and share them passionately—because they love the individual statements and the good they represent.

ABN: How do you market to the art-appreciative philanthropist community?

CE: This has been a great partnership with our artists. It is part of our contract that we will market each other—cross-pollinate, if you will—to our respective fan bases via social media and email. They share the project they’ve worked on and what it means to them. We share their art and artist statements both through marketing and our website. It’s been an effective way to grow.

ABN: How do you work with artists to incorporate their designs into your products?

CE: For our visual artists who will have their work placed on products like phone cases, water bottles, and apparel, we have a pretty specific set of guidelines set up. We have learned many of the guidelines through trial and error. Our main goal is to make sure the art is represented as closely to the original work as possible. Mockups are made and shown to the artists before full production.

ABN: How can artists become involved with Red Dirt Shop?

CE: Right now, we find most of our artists through recommendations from other artists. We’re lucky to have such a great list of alumni. We also reach out to people we come across on the web. However, anyone can email us at info@reddirtshop.com.

ABN: Any advice for other social-minded art entrepreneurs out there?

CE: To be successful and accomplish your goals, remember to keep the discipline of your business first. When you do this, the intentions of your heart will come to fruition and grow.

Nicki Porter is a Boston-based writer, editor, and former preschool teacher. She believes in good art and good biscuits. 

The post Goods for Good appeared first on Art Business News.

By Meredith Quinn

The stories of Cuba, a land so close yet so far away, are teaching the world about life and people’s struggles in an isolated country. Perhaps no one has been more inspired than Conde Contemporary owner Stacy Conde, who, in her hometown of Miami, runs a gallery specializing in Cuban art.

Though she started out in the fashion world as a protégé of British design icon Barbara Hulanicki, Conde says that making the transition to art “was almost a no-brainer.” After redesigning gutted Art Deco hotels and working on the clothing Hulanicki sold in her London store, Biba, Conde found that “Art was fashion. Art was everything.”

Married to contemporary Cuban-born artist Andres Conde, Stacy Conde first entered the art world in 1998 with the Goodman-Conde Gallery. She has now set up shop in Little Havana to share the work and stories of a culture with which she so strongly identifies.

We asked Conde about her journey, her Miami gallery and the effect of the newest Cuba-U.S. diplomatic announcement on the art world.

Art Business News: What is it about Cuban artists that has made you devote so much of your career to spotlighting their work?

Stacy Conde: I was born and raised in Miami, so proximity is something. There were several waves of Cuban immigration into the United States, and one of them was [the Mariel Boatlift, a mass emigration of Cubans who departed from Cuba’s Mariel Harbor for the United States between April 15 and Oct. 31, 1980]. I was 10 years old, and it just affected me so deeply. We received more than 100,000 Cubans in … a year to Miami, and [it] was almost painful to watch. You had these people who had left everything—lost everything, except their dignity and their quest for freedom—and, as they began to assimilate into society, you grew up with them. And I just found the culture so very close to, believe it or not, a Southern culture, where my grandmother is from. It’s very food-centered, family-centered. You laugh, you fight, you dance, you kiss, you hug and you eat. It’s really a beautiful, warm culture that is very rich in so many ways. The different influences in the culture are expressed in the art—European influences, African influences and native influences. It’s this gorgeous amalgamation.

ABN: Why did you feel compelled to share this artwork with the world?

SC: It speaks to me. If you relate so much to a culture and you genuinely like the people, you like their way of being and you like their chutzpah, you’re going to like their expression on many levels. It’s a love for the culture. And then you look at a group of people who have suffered and struggled for such a long time and, in so many cases, maintained this sense of buoyancy, this sense of humor, this amazing outlook. And if you get an artist who is like that, you watch what they channel onto a canvas or into a sculpture, and it’s pretty remarkable.

ABN: What do Cuban artists offer that is unique to their culture?

SC: Their point of view is very specific because they have been almost locked down. Even the Cubans that are out in the diaspora are coming from that perspective. They’re seeing the outside world from a different perspective.

ABN: What makes you want to work with an artist?

SC: I have to see the work and really be moved by the work because … there’s so much art out there. There are so many people out there doing pretty good work, so, when I see something, I have to go, “Wow. That has moved me.” After that, I have to relate to the artists in some way because … I’m looking for a long-term partnership with the artist. We very much rely on each other. As much as I’m helping [the artists], they’re helping me. We’re building our careers together. So if I don’t have someone that I feel like I can have a partner in, that I can work with, then I don’t want to work with [that person]. Life is too short to be miserable. I’m not interested in fighting. We’ve worked out our lives so that I spend the vast majority of my time with my husband. His studio is at the back of the gallery. I’m running everything from the front. But we have coffee together. We talk. And this is how I want my life to be. I want it to be happy. And what could be better than being surrounded by beautiful work and beautiful people inside—the beautiful souls that created this work?

At the same time, it’s tremendously hard work. I don’t know that I’ve ever worked this hard in my life. It’s constant. You do what you have to do to make it happen. It’s not just my career. It’s not just my gallery. It’s all of these really talented and wonderful people that I work with who I want to keep working. [I do] not want to see some of these people have to do other jobs just to make ends meet.

ABN: What makes people so enthusiastic about the work you represent?

SC: Number 1: the quality of the work … the backstory of the work itself, as well as the artists. The artists have very compelling stories, and [they express] these stories in their work. You look at a painting—for example, Andres’ Social series [a re-creation of covers from the famous Cuban magazine, Social, which closed down in 1938]—and you see very graphic, commercial, pretty work, and you can just take that at face value, or you can kind of dig into it and try to see exactly what it is. … Andres’ idea was to reopen this magazine in 1939 in his own head and do 240 new covers and reclose the magazine again symbolically on the date of the Cuban Revolution in 1959. On some of these canvases, he’s using precious metals, like 23-carat gold, to further drive home the point: “This is what it was,” as opposed to, “Look at the misery; look at what you’ve created. Let’s go backward and take a hard look back at how wonderful this place was.” Andres has become kind of tired of seeing the same symbolism in Cuban protest art over and over again—the inner tubes and the paddles. That’s a legitimate expression, but you become desensitized to seeing these things, especially here in Miami, where everybody knows some really painful and tragic stories.

ABN: Is your clientele also largely Latin American, or do your artists and their themes cross cultural lines?

SC: They absolutely cross cultural lines, which I find so interesting. I initially thought it would probably appeal more to Cuban-Americans, but the fact of the matter is that we’re probably about half and half—maybe even more so American at this point, which is really wonderful. It means that the larger population is really looking very seriously at Cuban art.

ABN: Sometimes you look at a piece of art, and it just speaks to you. It doesn’t matter what the culture is.

SC: Right, and that’s the point. I’m not trying to have some kind of super-political Cuban protest gallery; that’s not what it is about at all. I have one kinetic sculpture in the window that has six dolls that salute whenever you walk by them, and they’re dressed as Cuban schoolchildren. That is the only political piece I have in the gallery right now [of] about 60 works. It’s meant to transcend the political situation in Cuba. It’s honestly about the art.

ABN: What effects do you think the recent accord reached between the United States and Cuba will have on the Cuban art scene?

SC: Initially, I think there is going to be a mad rush. I think it’s going to further stabilize the art market. When you have a greater exchange between the United States and Cuba, it’s going to create very stable prices—both in the U.S. and on the island—because now you’re not going to try to undercut another market or oversell it. It’s going to stabilize everything.

Everyone that I’ve talked to—regardless of their political affiliation—is at least hopeful [that] it will affect not just Cuban artists, but the Cuban people, in a positive way. Whether it will I have no idea, but it is certainly my most sincere hope that the Cuban people have more freedom to live their lives in the way that they would like to live them.

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