A View of an Alert Island: Two Centuries of Art and Teaching of Art in Cuba

Abstract

This article provides the reader with a broad overview of two hundred years of arts and teaching of the arts in Cuba. The XIX century was characterised by a specialised teaching of Plastic Arts that was not strongly academic due to financial and cultural reasons. In the programmes of teacher preparation as well as in elementary teaching, the teaching drawing (copying) was, in that century, more an aspiration than a reality. The XX century brought the republic and with it meaningful experimentation and the presence of avant-garde ideas in relation to art and the teaching of art. The Revolution of 1959 opened way to significant opportunities for experimentation that led to current experiences and the work of creative groups in the «Instituto Superior de Arte». This will be the framework in which the article will draw the view of an alert island.