In the artists on display, a reflective vision prevails, imbued with ironic and sarcastic traits, sometimes paradoxical and restless, or rough and without emphasis, as happens in certain Cuban literature - from the direct and anti-dogmatic writing of Virgilio Piñera or Edmundo Desnoes, to the language scratchy and harsh by Pedro Juan Gutiérrez in which the traces of the marginal universe are sedimented. A vision always accompanied by the internalization and scrutiny of history (with its derivatives), as well as by unstoppable syncretistic attitudes. These twelve artists deny any canon and epic framework, demolishing any metaphysical pretension. They offer a choral and multiple visual journey that foregrounds an imaginary of freedom (heir to the Cuban carnaval) in which decentralized fragments of a narrative of ethical commitment converge. Here public space and private space (often denied by the precepts of Communism), socio-cultural events and unexpected imaginative paths intertwine.

Since the Revolution of 1959, Cuba has been and continues to be an influential cultural crossroads for the art of South America and the Third World: an international scenario where numerous institutions such as Casa de las Américas or the ISA (Institute Superior de Arte), and in particular the driving force behind the Wilfredo Lam Center and the Bienal de La Habana (started in 1984).

The Cuban video image is visceral and cerebral , but always in flux: it passes from illustrative and declamatory profiles to a mixture of visual codes. It has in common with Latin American experiences the mix of poetic and provocative meanings, as well as high and low formal expedients. He takes to the streets and enters into relationships with subculture, neighborhoods and forgotten corners (as with artists Javier Castro, Juan Carlos Alom or Lázaro Saavedra). It gives space to the body and its most hidden impulses, embodying the energy of the polytheism of Santería (called Regla de Ocha, or Lucumí). And it interprets precariousness, social potential and forms of survival.

Furthermore, he is wary of political strategies that cling to the symbols of the nation in a rhetorical manner to face a society in crisis, changing and in constant turmoil. In fact , it discusses the official versions of reality and history by exploring and recovering a "shared" cultural repertoire, made explicit by dance, sounds, voices and common language as essential experiences in which to immerse oneself.  

The exhibition at the National Museum of Matera creates an important moment to learn about some themes of the Cuban world, its insularity, also echoing research outside the island. It demonstrates how the ideological crisis of recent decades contributes to an artistic practice eager to overcome the gap between the historical past and the social present, configuring a field of visual investigation, despite the limited equipment that characterizes the island.