New vistas

Haifa artists exhibit in Cuba, despite its non-recognition of Israel

Veteran artists Belu-Simion Fainaru and Avital Bar-Shay participate in Havana Biennale

Jessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center

People at the 40th Havana Biennale in Havana, Cuba, February 2025 (Courtesy Belu-Simion Fainaru)
People at the 40th Havana Biennale in Havana, Cuba, February 2025 (Courtesy Belu-Simion Fainaru)

Israeli curators Belu-Simion Fainaru and Avital Bar-Shay are currently exhibiting a selection of Israeli artworks at the International Biennale of Havana, Cuba, despite the two countries not having formal relations.

“It’s not an obvious kind of thing at all,” said Fainaru, a sculptor and lecturer at the University of Haifa.

Fainaru and Bar-Shay are the creators of the Mediterranean Biennale, an art exhibit usually held in northern Israel.

The Havana Biennale, celebrating its 40th year, is one of the oldest biennale exhibits worldwide, said Fainaru, and with a different vibe from those held in Europe.

“It’s much friendlier; it shows art that isn’t necessarily Western world art,” he said.

It’s also more communal, he noted, with art displayed throughout the city and free tickets to make it more accessible.

“It’s really urban,” said Fainaru. “You walk around the city to see the artworks.”

‘Traffic Light for Love,’ a work by artist and curator Belu-Simion Fainaru at the 40th Havana Biennale, through February 2025 (Courtesy Belu-Simion Fainaru)

Fainaru and Bar-Shay are the only Israeli artists taking part in the event in Havana, with an exhibit curated by them that includes their artworks and those of several other Israelis.

Fainaru was in contact with the organizers prior to the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack, before the global art world shunned many Israeli artists due to the war and the high civilian death toll in Gaza.

Sculptor and curator Belu-Simion Fainaru brought Israeli works to the 40th Havana Biennale, through February 2025 (Courtesy Belu-Simion Fainaru)

“We were in contact after the 7th, and I would tell them I was in Haifa, and they would ask what’s going on,” said Fainaru. “We didn’t get into politics. They would sometimes offer a comment about finding agreement, about finding some kind of peace.”

Fainaru expected to be disinvited, given Cuba’s politics. The organizers, however, appeared to be far less political than their government.

“Europe, the free Western continent, is a lot less open to Israeli artists,” he said. “They don’t show art [from] Israel even when they know us personally, and it’s become very hard to enter art events in Europe as an Israeli.”

Fainaru and Bar-Shay traveled to Havana in November to assemble their works, and are returning this month.

An artwork by Angelika Sher, part of the exhibit by curator Belu-Simion Fainaru at the 40th Havana Biennale, through February 2025 (Courtesy Belu-Simion Fainaru)

The notes accompanying their works don’t explicitly describe them as Israeli, but they haven’t hidden their identities either, said Fainaru.

“I always believe it’s important to be present as an Israeli,” he said, “to have your voice heard.”

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