José Miguel Cano

José Miguel Cano

Cuban (1999)
About Artist
José Miguel Cano Álvarez (Havana, 1999) is a Cuban visual artist trained at the National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro (2016–2020) and at the Faculty of Visual Arts of the University of the Arts (ISA), where he pursued studies between 2022 and 2025. His academic training has been complemented by a wide range of specialized workshops in drawing, printmaking, photography, site-specific practice, digital collage, ceramics, and lithography, contributing to a plural artistic practice in constant exploration. Since 2022, he has presented solo exhibitions in institutional spaces, galleries, and virtual platforms in Cuba and abroad. Notable exhibitions include Impasse. Logbook of a Prolonged Uncertainty (Galería Taller Gorría, 2025), Thoughts Are Free (ISA, 2024), and Inventory Project (Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, 2023), as well as participation in international platforms such as ArteMorfosis in Zurich. His work has been featured in numerous national and international group exhibitions, including the 15th Havana Biennial, the Salon of Contemporary Cuban Art, the 13th Havana Biennial, video art festivals in New York, and exhibitions in Mexico, Colombia, and virtual environments. These participations demonstrate a sustained projection within the contemporary Cuban art scene, with integration into both institutional and alternative circuits. Between 2021 and 2023, he worked… Read more Show less

José Miguel Cano Álvarez (Havana, 1999) is a Cuban visual artist trained at the National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro (2016–2020) and at the Faculty of Visual Arts of the University of the Arts (ISA), where he pursued studies between 2022 and 2025. His academic training has been complemented by a wide range of specialized workshops in drawing, printmaking, photography, site-specific practice, digital collage, ceramics, and lithography, contributing to a plural artistic practice in constant exploration.

Since 2022, he has presented solo exhibitions in institutional spaces, galleries, and virtual platforms in Cuba and abroad. Notable exhibitions include Impasse. Logbook of a Prolonged Uncertainty (Galería Taller Gorría, 2025), Thoughts Are Free (ISA, 2024), and Inventory Project (Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, 2023), as well as participation in international platforms such as ArteMorfosis in Zurich.

His work has been featured in numerous national and international group exhibitions, including the 15th Havana Biennial, the Salon of Contemporary Cuban Art, the 13th Havana Biennial, video art festivals in New York, and exhibitions in Mexico, Colombia, and virtual environments. These participations demonstrate a sustained projection within the contemporary Cuban art scene, with integration into both institutional and alternative circuits.

Between 2021 and 2023, he worked as a lecturer in the Drawing and Printmaking departments at the San Alejandro Academy. His work has been reviewed in catalogs, books, and specialized publications, and is part of collections such as the Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation (CIFO), ArteMorfosis – Cuban Art Platform, and the Los Carbonell Foundation. His trajectory confirms an active and reflective presence within the current landscape of emerging Cuban art.

He was recently awarded the Grand Prize at the third edition of the Malayerba competition, organized by the Los Carbonell Foundation.

Subjects Animals, Representations of Everyday Objects, Text
Mediums & techniques Installation, Color Photography, Digital Painting and Drawing
Curriculum

EDUCATION

2022–2025 — Faculty of Visual Arts, University of the Arts (ISA)
2016–2020 — National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro

WORKSHOPS ATTENDED

2023
— Anthropological Portrait. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Analog Photography. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Site-Specific Workshop. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.

2022
— Digital Collage for Pictorial Transfer. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.

2019
— Ceramics Workshop. National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro, Havana, Cuba.

2018
— Polymer Lithography Workshop. National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro, Havana, Cuba.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

2021–2023
— Drawing Department, National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro, Havana, Cuba.
— Printmaking Department, National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro, Havana, Cuba.

Solo Exhibitions
2025 — Impasse. Logbook of a Prolonged Uncertainty. Galería Taller Gorría (GTG), Havana, Cuba.
2024 — Thoughts Are Free. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
2023 — Inventory Project. Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, Havana, Cuba.
2022 — Through the Hoop. ArteMorfosis virtual platform, Cuban Art Platform, Zurich, Switzerland.
Group Exhibitions

2025
— Broken Arrows. La Casa del Río Studio Workshop, Havana, Cuba.
— HB 2025. Cuban Contemporary Art. Galería La Nave, Havana, Cuba.
— Malayerba. Third Edition, White Hall of the Basilica and Convent of San Francisco of Assisi, Havana, Cuba.
— Puzzle. 5th Edition, Galería Taller Gorría (GTG), Havana, Cuba.
— A Stone’s Throw Away. Curatorial Grant 2024, Center for the Development of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Experimental Loop. 3rd Edition, International Video Art Festival, NYLAAT Gallery, Governors Island, New York, USA.

2024
— Limbo. 15th Havana Biennial, Pabellón Cuba, Havana, Cuba.
— Domes Project. 15th Havana Biennial, Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Llamarada. Casa Borda Museum, Taxco de Alarcón, Mexico.
— 6th Biennial. From Here. (Virtual platform), Bucaramanga, Colombia.
— Decrystallization. 9th Salon of Contemporary Cuban Art, El Arsenal, Havana, Cuba.
— 13 Stories + One. Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, Havana, Cuba.
— Making It to the End of the Month. Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, Havana, Cuba.

2023
— Malayerba. First Edition, White Hall of the Basilica and Convent of San Francisco of Assisi, Havana, Cuba.
— Puzzle. 3rd Edition, Galería Taller Gorría (GTG), Havana, Cuba.

2022
— Vertigo. Another History of Appearances. Galería Taller Gorría (GTG), Havana, Cuba.
— Strata of the Interstice. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Soft Varnish. Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC), Havana, Cuba.
— Post-it 9. Galería Galiano, Havana, Cuba.
— Digital Summer Show (MoCDA), Decentraland platform.
— Cumulus. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Barter Strokes. Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.
— Transoceanic Collaborative Encounters. Virtual Exchange Project, Higher Institute of Art (ISA), Faculty of Visual Arts, Havana, Cuba.

2021
— Class-room IV. Galería La Nave, Havana, Cuba.

2020
— Universe 8. The Investigation. 8th Salon of Contemporary Cuban Art, social media platforms of the Center for the Development of Visual Arts (CDAV), Havana, Cuba.
— Prism. Colors After the Crisis. (Virtual exhibition), Cuban Art Platform ArteMorfosis, 2019.

2019
— 500 x 500. Luz y Oficio Visual Arts Center, Havana, Cuba.
— Testing Strength. 13th Havana Biennial, National Academy of Fine Arts San Alejandro, Havana, Cuba.

2018
— May Diaries. El Artista Gallery, Havana, Cuba.
— 200 Years of San Alejandro. National Museum of Fine Arts, Cuban Art Collection, Havana, Cuba.

Prizes and Mentions
Grand Prize of the 3rd Edition of Malayerba. White Hall of the Basilica and Convent of San Francisco of Assisi, Havana, Cuba.
Collections

Ella Cisneros Collection, Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation (CIFO), USA.
ArteMorfosis – Cuban Art Platform, Zurich, Switzerland.
Los Carbonell Foundation, Panama.

Meet the Artist
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