Behind the Celia Cruz that was exhibited on the stage of the Fairground during the Arrecife Carnival are the hands of Daniel Barbosa. "At 16 years old I started working in a lettering factory. At that time there was no digital printing, so everything was drawn and painted by hand. The lettering trade gave me a lot of knowledge and experience," explains the artist of Brazilian origin.
"I have worked with lettering in 3 countries: Brazil, United States and Spain. In the United States I also made metal sculptures for different artists since I had taken a welding course. Upon arriving in Spain I was 12 years in Madrid, where I continued with the lettering and manufacturing articles designed by other artists," says Barbosa.
After spending more than a decade living in Spain, the sculptor took the leap to manufacture his own artistic proposals. "I started trying different materials. I am a recycling artist and I work with metal, plastic or wood. I love being able to revive materials and tell new stories with them. After a while experimenting, I decided to look for spaces to exhibit. And that's when I had my first contact with institutional bureaucracy and the eternal lists. But the private galleries, if you are not known, it is very difficult to afford them," says Barbosa.
"Luckily, I managed to exhibit some of my works thanks to a friend. And it was great. It was in the 800Madrid gallery, but I don't know if it is still open because the pandemic closed many businesses," says the Brazilian artist.
After this experience, Barbosa decided to move to Galicia, where he was for 5 years. "It was a discovery. I could see how artistic dreams were made possible. I was surprised with the quick response of the procedures and how easy it was to make a request. Of course, they have a Department of Culture that is dedicated to supporting new artists. In 1 month I already got a room to exhibit my works for 15 days. The exhibition was called 'Hands that speak' and consisted of recycled metal and plastic sculptures," says the artist. Subsequently, he moved on the recommendation of a friend to Lanzarote, where he has been residing for more than 9 years.
Celia Cruz Sculpture
The sculptor states that it is the first time that a company gives him an opportunity to exhibit one of his works publicly in Lanzarote. "I was lucky that the company that was in charge of decorating the stages, Bestial Print, had done some other sculpture work for me previously. And I loved that they bet on me because never in my artistic life had I done something so big and so visible," says Barbosa.
"Bestial Print has a lot of experience at an artistic level. They gave me the information and I had to process it and have it come out of my hands. And they helped me in terms of design and color selection. For me it was an honor to make this sculpture because I felt that I was paying tribute to Celia Cruz," says the Brazilian artist.
Barbosa took three weeks to sculpt and assemble the figure of the Cuban singer. "I was sculpting it in the Fairground because being so big I didn't have a space to do it. And then we assembled it on stage with the help of cranes and elevators," explains the sculptor. "There are two flags represented in the sculpture: the Canarian and the LGTBI," he adds.
Lack of artistic representation
However, despite the large size of the sculpture and being exhibited on the stage of the Fairground during the Arrecife Carnival 2023, "there was no one who was interested in it", criticizes Barbosa. "The exhibitions of the murgas or the fall of the stands were mentioned, but no one dedicated a look or a phrase to the figure of Celia Cruz. I felt that this was a dark end of the tunnel," laments the Brazilian artist.
"In Lanzarote, opportunities are given to the same two or three people. Having so many artists on the island, I don't understand how there isn't a list with our names so that, when there is an offer, for example, to put a sculpture in a roundabout, they look within this circle of artists. When an offer is published in the BOE they do it almost hidden, nobody finds out and they choose the artist by finger," he criticizes.
"I have requested up to 10 times to exhibit in some public center or art gallery, but I have been on the waiting list since I arrived on the island nine years ago. It is a very sad reality," concludes the sculptor.