Born in Camagüey, Cuba in 1982, Ariel Cabrera Montejo was trained at the Academy in Camagüey and officially received his degree from the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, Cuba. Taking the Cuban archive as a point of departure, Cabrera’s oeuvre explores the divisive historical accounts from Cuba and those from abroad to examine ideas of fiction and truth. Cabrera specifically introduces theatricality in his artistic practice to focus on the Interwar Period (1879-95) and the Cuban War of Independence (1895-98). By doing so, Cabrera ingeniously introduces anecdotal heroes/heroines to his paintings to represent the everyday person as heroic with carnal desires.

 

Cabrera has exhibited at Coates and Scarry Gallery (NYC), Galería Estéreo (Mexico City), Galería Miranda (Camagüey), Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (Winston-Salen), Galeria Alvaro Alcázar (Madrid), among others. Cabrera attended the Fine Arts Academy of Camagüey and the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) Havana in Cuba.

 

Cabrera lives and works in New York.