Yanelys Nuñez’s Diary

The suspension of the official Biennial planned to take place from October 5th until November 5th 2018, has alarmed many artists, both in and outside of Cuba, if you bear in mind that it’s the most anticipated event in the country in the field of visual arts.

Something is about to happen in the Colon neighborhood, there’s a certain smell of recently mixed paint. You can hear discreet footsteps at night. People don’t understand why they are gathering here in this area, but there they are…

After Hurricane Irma whipped through the city, I went out onto the street. It’s 4 PM on Sunday. It’s still a bit windy, but the sun is out as if nothing had happened. There isn’t any electricity and all businesses are shut, but people have still started coming out onto the street.

The seven-day limit that Cuban police gave artist Yulier P to erase his graffitis are up and even though he refused to do this, he still hasn’t been arrested.

Organizing a raffle in Cuba or, better yet, in Havana, presumes a high level of enthusiasm. It’s not easy to convince a diverse public who aren’t openly familiar with gambling or with the adrenaline of a bettor.

When a new baby girl comes into a family, the forthcoming arrival of her 15th birthday is reason for conversation and concerns. Some parents – those who can – open up a savings account when the baby girl still can’t even say her own name.

A part of the emerging private business sector in Havana are the bars that have been rapidly spreading like a rash for some time now. These are spaces which have operated as places where the most privileged young people go to unwind and have fun.

Writing a regular diary in Prague was difficult for me. The peculiarities of the video journalism course, my encounter with the city, with the Internet and with the Czech people filled my 24 hours to the full.

This isn’t my first time in Terminal 3 at Jose Marti International Airport in the capital, but it is the first time that I’m not here to say goodbye to somebody, because this time it’s me who’s traveling. There’s a long line at the check-in desk for the Czech Republic, but we don’t feel it.

In order to accurately assess OMNI’s impact, you have to look at its different stages, learn about government institutions and their censorship, about misunderstandings, bureaucracy, the urgency for a necessary art – a trinity which includes society, poetry and needs.