Carlos Rodríguez Cárdenas was born in Sancti Spiritus, Villa Clara, Cuba in 1962. After studying at the René Portocarrero workshop, Cárdenas became an influential figure and key artist in the political art movement. His work is oftentimes imbued with irony and parody to provoke viewers to question the reality the world has imposed on them. His use of geometrical shapes influences the way he depicts urban landscape in his pieces. Cárdenas’ also suffered firsthand from censorship, which led him to flee to Mexico in the 1990s and later New York, where he now lives and works.

 

Rodríguez Cárdenas has exhibited at Galeria Nina Menocal (Mexico City), Galeria Ramis F. Barquet (Monterrey), Frederic Snitzer Gallery (Coral Gables), and ARCO 93 International Art Fair (Madrid) among others. His work is held in major collections such as the Whitney Museum of American Art (New York), the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Museum of Art in Fort Lauderdale, Museum Ludwig (Cologne), and the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana among many others. He holds a degree from Havana’s Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA).