NEW YORK.- Casa Frela Gallery and curators Francisco and Julie Collazo are pleased to invite you to “Luz y Sombra/Light and Shadow: Contemporary Cuban Photography, Painting, and Drawing,” Casa Frela’s first Cuban show featuring both established career artists, including the renowned photographer René Peña, and less widely known but powerful artists including Nadalito Antelmo, Alejandro Azcuy, Brayan Collazo, Juan Carlos Garcia Marrero, Lissette Solorzano, and Rafael Valiente.

The show is also particularly exciting because it will present the painter Juan Antonio Picasso for the first time in the United States. Picasso, descendant of Pablo Picasso’s great-great-grandfather, is one of Cuba’s emerging new artistic talents. Juan Antonio Picasso has participated in four collective and a personal exhibit this year and won second prize in the National Salon´s Contemporary Art. The exhibit Opens Saturday, August 05, 2006.

Whether it’s the inaccessibility, mystery, and intrigue of Cuba for all but the most determined of American collectors or the fact that the art is, quite simply, considered by the worldwide arts community to be exceptional, Cuban art is hotter than ever.

Casa Frela Gallery and curators Francisco and Julie Collazo are pleased to invite you to “Luz y Sombra/Light and Shadow: Contemporary Cuban Photography, Painting, and Drawing,” Casa Frela’s first Cuban show.

While most Cuban art is characterized by its use of vibrant color, this show will feature works that explore “luz y sombra,” or light and shadow, by working with shades of black, white, and gray. Thematically organized around this broad idea of light and shadow, the works range from photographs of daily scenes to abstract paintings exploring more provocative subjects. “Luz y Sombra: Contemporary Cuban Photography, Painting, and Drawing,” brings together both established career artists, including the renowned photographer René Peña, and less widely known but powerful artists including Nadalito Antelmo, Alejandro Azcuy, Brayan Collazo, Juan Carlos Garcia Marrero, Lissette Solorzano, and Rafael Valiente. The show is also particularly exciting because it will present the painter Juan Antonio Picasso for the first time in the United States.

Picasso, descendant of Pablo Picasso’s great great grandfather, is one of Cuba’s emerging new artistic talents. Since presenting his first exhibition in Cuba last year, he has become increasingly sought after, not just for his connection to the famous Spanish master, but because he is a skilled and talented artist in his own right. Four of Picasso’s works will be on display in this exhibit, and represent affordable initial investments for the astute collector.

This is a must-see show, not just for the Cuban art aficionado, but for seasoned collectors of different provenances who wish to expand their collections, as well as new collectors who would like to build a solid foundation with work from Cuba.