Adrian Fernandez Milanes

Adrián Fernández Milanés was born in 1984 in Havana, Cuba. Lives and works in Havana. Adrián Fernandez Milanés studied visual arts at the San Alejandro Fine Arts Academy (2004) and later at the Superior Institute of Arts (2010) in Havana. From 2010 to 2012, he trained in documentary photography and film making at The Ludwig Foundation of Cuba and New York University, Tisch School of the Arts Special Programs. He currently works as a visual artist and a lecturer on Documentary Photography for New York University, Tisch School of the Arts Special Programs and a visual arts projects specialist for the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba. Adrián Fernández Milanés’ photographs are conceptually interesting and visually stunning. By means of several photographic series, he brings together different spaces and elements that he regards as keys in the understanding of the social and aesthetic differences in Cuba’s society. In his series Epilogue II, Fernández Milanés focuses on dancers of the Tropicana, a world-famous revue in Havana, Cuba. He refers to the fact that it was established for the entertainment of a foreign public but nevertheless is often regarded as a cultural tradition and stereotype of Cuba. The images in his series To Be or to Pretend are still lives using objects from the homes of the bourgeoisie of Havana. Treasured antique vases and containers hold plastic fruits and fake flowers – a very Cuban design element. Each container is centred on a colourful and graphic backdrop, each in its particular way a continuation of the flora and fruits they surround.