Monday, May 23, 2016

Obama, Cuba and the curious case of the 53


Part of the deal made by our President with the racist Cuban dictator Raul Castro, included the release of 53 (from the thousands) of Cuban political prisoners held in the Castro Brothers' Workers Paradise.

Most of those 53 have subsequently been re-arrested, some even while the President was in Havana watching a baseball game.

 Now, (Via) Mario Alberto Hernandez Leyva, one of the 53, has also been re-arrested and his present whereabouts are unknown.
Hernandez Leyva was re-arrested in November 2015 for organizing a pot-banging protest ("cacerolazo"). He was handed a new three-year prison sentence for disobedience.
 
In other words, Raul Castro reneged on his deal with President Obama. 
 
Nonetheless, Obama still traveled to Cuba this past March and didn't say a word about Hernandez Leyva.
 
Hernandez Leyva has been transferred to various prisons throughout Cuba, where he has conducted hunger strikes to protest his unjust imprisonment.
 
Most recently, he was transferred from the nefarious Combinado del Este prison to Santa Clara, where we was being held in a punishment cell.
 
 Last week, he was "discretely" transferred once again -- and his whereabouts remain unknown.
Still not a word from the Obama Administration.

Refueling at Sea

Gorgeous work by Walter Brightwell... perhaps the greatest US Navy ship painter of all time?

This is a Navy destroyer refueling at sea... not too many navies in the world can do this (the Russians can't).

Sunday, May 22, 2016

The Way Back at WAW

The Way Back at Washington ArtWorks features artwork by United States Military Veterans whose art pieces are derived from their uniforms. Each artist has transformed their uniform into paper upon which they create works of art and poetry. A therapeutic manner of creating work, this exhibition gives insight into the affects of active duty on military members.

Name of Event: Opening reception of The Way Back
Opening Date: Friday, June 3rd
Time: 6-9pm
Dates of Exhibition: June 3rd - June 30th
Cost: Free and Open to the Public
Contact #: 301.654.1998
Address: 12276 Wilkins Ave. Rockville, MD 20852

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Dulce Pinzon's "Rubber Duckies"

Dulce Pinzon is without a doubt one of the leading contemporary photographers in the world. This immensely talented lady, whom Forbes Magazine called "one of the top 100 most influential Mexicans in the world," has access to an abandoned natural history museum in her native Mexico.

This is my favorite image from that developing series of works - it's a brilliant example of what an intelligent and talented photographer can do with such a cool resource such as an empty and abandoned museum!

"Rubber Duckies" by Dulce Pinzon