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Emilio Sanchez
(1921-1999)
Tugs Under the Manhattan Bridge
Born in Camaguey,
Cuba, Emilio Sanchez would become a leader in plastic
Cuban artists living in exile.
Though he received public schooling in Camaguey, Sanchez
set his sights outside of Cuba for artistic training.
Unlike many of his contemporaries, he did not attend San
Alejandro, but instead traveled to Mexico and then New
York to study at the Arts Student League in the late
1930s. From then on, New York became Sanchez's home. He
was eventually naturalized, and did not want to live
under Castro’s regime. Though he was no longer living in
Cuba, he was still deeply seated in the roots of his
home country. After 1960, Sanchez never returned to Cuba
to visit, but Cuba was still with him in his art.
In the early stages of his career, Sanchez would
initially paint typical symbols and figure studies of
things which represented his island nation. Fish,
dancers, mulattos and fruit vendors proved to be popular
subjects of his, and were well received.
Mural
However, as time went
on and as Sanchez grew artistically, he began to immerse
himself in more plastic styles. His work began to take
on more simplified styles and cleaner lines. In
specific, he would paint the façades of old homes and
show the linear qualities of their doors, windows and
exterior. In a way, the repetitious patterns of these
home fronts mirrored a sense of eternity for Sanchez, as
well as a sense of greatness.
Grand Yellow House
The Garden Wall
By the late 1960s,
Sanchez had become well known for his this so-called
“abstract” styling and his series of home fronts. His
use of light, geometry and color were perhaps the reason
that they were so popular—Sanchez used this idea of
painting homes in a way that few have done before or
since. His urban landscapes and Caribbean architecture
paintings have carved a place for him in art history
that would be hard to replace.
In total, Sanchez participated in more than 50 one-man
exhibitions and more than 50 collective exhibitions.
However, only two of these exhibits ever took place in
Cuba. For the most part, Sanchez exhibited his work in
New York or other places across the United States.
However, Sanchez also exhibited quite often in Europe
and Central America and was said to have traveled
extensively. This exposure within the United States and
elsewhere leaves a great possibility for his work to be
privately owned, but otherwise unauthenticated. Since
Sanchez had become more popular from the late 1960s
until his death in the late 1990s, one may be more
likely to own a piece of his from the 1940s or 50s. As a
young and struggling artist in New York, he would have
had to sell work to survive. These early paintings would
most definitely be depictions of Cuban lifestyles and
subjects. Could you own one of these pieces?
House in San Juan
Frenos
Fiesta
In general, Sanchez
signed most of his work. Not just a painter, Sanchez
also worked in lithographs and color sketches. He was an
extremely versatile print maker, which is what
essentially brought him museum attention, and
eventually, commercial attention as well.
Today, Sanchez's work is owned publicly and privately
world wide. His work is housed at the Museum of Modern
Art in New York, as well as at the New York Public
Library and the Chase Manhattan Bank. His work is also
housed in Bogota, Australia, and of course, at the
National Museum in Havana.
