Rigoberto Mena Santana (Artemisa, Havana, 1961)

Rigoberto Mena draws inspiration from his Havana home’s urban landscapes and the spirit of the people and the city.  He is an internationally renowned abstract artist, whose thick strokes of ink and intense colours create great expressive power. “The public often asks about the title of my work or what the work means and I always say that it’s not descriptive, that I work with emotions. You may start with an idea, but it is impossible to express abstract things that people can fully understand. I’m talking about the realm of inner emotions, rather than the field of rationality.”

In 2011 Mena was selected to be part of the permanent collection of the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de Cuba, after the inauguration of his exhibition “Hablando en Lenguas”.  He participated in London at a major international exhibition, Creative Cities Collection, associated with the 2012 Olympics. More recently, at the Twelfth Havana Biennial (2015), Mena turned to a different medium when he presented an installation created with industrial materials, inspired by the construction of his new studio-workshop.

Mena is well established on the international art scene with over 30 solo shows and numerous group exhibitions across the globe.  His work has been widely exhibited including in Mexico, Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, China, the UK and Holland. It is held in over 30 public and private collections including in the USA, Canada, Spain, Germany, UK, Monaco, Mexico,  and Cuba.