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DERWIN LEIVA

Lives and works in Honolulu, Hawaii
http://www.derwinleiva.com

I grew up in Santa Clara, Cuba and became fascinated with
art at an early age. I remember helping my grandfather make

charcoal from the Aroma tree. I always looked forward to helping
him because it was a way for me to get free material to draw.
I would pick up empty cigarettes boxes and break them so I
could use the white surface in the inside of the box to draw. I

really enjoyed drawing with charcoal in different surfaces and it
helped me capture my passion for art. Due to political reasons,
my family and I were forced to escape Cuba in 1995 and we
moved to Miami. Starting a life in a new country was a very

difficult task. Few years later I had the opportunity to meet the
style shattered traditional form of artistic representation and it
Cuban guitar player Arturo Fuerte. His music was, and still is, a
reminds me of my broken memories of my life in Cuba. In 2004 I
constant backdrop to my work. Even today much of my work
moved to Honolulu, Hawaii. where I started taking classes at the
is inspired by his rhythm and my love for music. My work has
Honolulu Museum of Art Linekona School.Here I was exposed
been also influenced by Picasso, Braque and Wifredo Lam. Their
to a variety of media: painting, photography, print making, glass,
metal fabrication, and bronze casting. Now as an emerging
Cuban-American artist I am interested in representing various
aspects of Cuba, including its political, social and cultural life. In
my work I try to depict a society that has experienced extreme
oppression but at the same time it has a rich culture and it is full

of life. Through the use of rhythm and motion in my work, I wish
ARTIST to mirror this experience of freedom found through Cuban music.


 FRAGMENTED CELLO, 2016 WROUGHT IRON 42X14X2.5 IN. | 106.6X 35.5X6.3 CM.
THE RED VIOLIN, 2016 BRONZE 24X7X2.5 IN. | 60.9X17.7X6.3 CM.

THE BLUE GUITAR, 2018 OIL ON CANVAS 60X48 IN. | 152.4X121.9 CM.
 THE VIOLINIST, 2018 OIL ON CANVAS 60X48 IN. | 152.4X121.9 CM.
372  THE CELEBRATION, 2017 OIL ON CANVAS 108X168 IN. | 274.3X 26.7 CM.  NOSTALGIA, 2018 OIL ON CANVAS 60X48 IN. | 152.4X121.9 CM.