Varda / Cuba
I grew up listening to Orishas and dancing on the rhythms and beats of Cha Cha Cha and Salsa with my father.
And I always cherished the sweet idea that one day I will travel to Cuba and will dance with locals on the streets.
Because this is how I pictured the country: Cubans randomly dancing with each other on the streets.
Before planning THE trip I went to the photo and film exhibition of Varda at the Pompidou Center here in Paris.
The photograph, Agnès Varda, was commissioned by the Cuban Institute of Art and Cinema to produce a film about the Cuba of 1963.
A year of taking photos, talking with people then a 30-minute movie “Salut les Cubains” (a reference to the then-magazine and radio show “Salut les Copains!”.
Revolution and joie de vivre are the key words of this exhibition: From learning about the political vision of Fidel Castro to discovering the intimacy of locals, their daily lives, beliefs and culture - a rich mix of African and Spanish cultures.
“To share is more important than the knowledge of the Other”, she said in an interview with Telerama.
And this is how I felt throughout the exhibition: she was giving food for thought, she was rewriting Cuban lives in a contemporary language, which is images, sounds and videos.
What I will retain from this beautiful, nostalgic yet very short trip to Cuba is: even though you are cut from the rest of the world you can still live, dream and be happy.
What if this is the definition of Paradise?
A cocoon bathed in a soft and spicy heat made of cigars, dance and the sweet promise of the here and now.
