The Shelley and Donald Rubin Exhibition Series presents

STEALING BASE: Cuba at Bat

September 11 – December 7, 2014

Arlés del Rio, Untitled from the series Esperando que caigan las cosas del cielo or Deporte nacional (Hoping That Things Fall from the Sky or National Sport), 2012. Shelley and Donald Rubin Private Collection.

STEALING BASE: Cuba at Bat is a visual exploration of baseball through the varied perspectives of contemporary Cuban-born artists, living in Cuba and the U.S.

In Cuban culture, love for la pelota (baseball) is deeply engrained. The arrival of baseball in Cuba coincided with the emergence of the independence movement in 1886 and the sport quickly became a collective emblem of national identity. A love for baseball connects Cubans across race, religion, politics and geography. Cuba’s history, filled with legends of pop-fly’s, strike outs, home runs, and curve balls, provides meaningful and accessible material for artists to create work with implications beyond the field. STEALING BASE recreates the infamous fiery discussions of Havana’s “La Esquina Caliente” and aims to explore the metaphoric power of the game. Appropriating their culture’s passion for the sport, the artists validate a basic Cuban understanding: baseball belongs to the people.

Featured artists:

Arlés del Rio
Frank Ernesto Martínez González
Villalvilla
Bernardo Navarro Tomas
Carlos Cárdenas
Harold Vázquez Ley
Reynerio Tamayo
Yunier Figueroa
José Angel Toirac
Juan Padrón
Douglas Pérez Castro
Perfecto Romero
Jesoviel Abstengo-Chaviano
Alejandro Aguilera
Quisqueya Henríquez

 A Wednesday evening lecture series will feature artist Alejandro Aguilera, experts Hoji Silva Miret and Gail Gelburd and others. Learn more.

Curated by Rachel Perera Weingeist and Elizabeth Peterson. Original installation concept by Orlando Hernández and Rachel Perera Weingeist.