Hanbury’s 2016 International Design Retreat: Days 4-7
On Tuesday we arrived in beautiful Cienfuegos, located in Central Cuba. Cienfuegos is the first, and an outstanding example of the new ideas of modernity, hygiene and order in urban planning as developed in Latin America from the 19th century.
Cienfuegos City Historian, Architect Iran Millan Cuetara, took us on a walking tour of Cienfuegos Historical Center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where our staff had the opportunity to do some sketching in the Centre and caught the eye of some local boys!
On Wednesday we took a day trip to Trinidad to visit Trinidad’s Historic Center and took a tour led by local architect and restoration specialist, Nancy Benitez.
We had an exciting day visiting the Architecture Museum, Museo Municipal de Historia and climbed the narrow wooden stairs to the tower for breathtaking views of Trinidad.
On Thursday we left Cienfuegos and traveled back to beautiful Havana where we visited the Jaimanitas neighborhood and Fusterlandia, the studio, residence and wild kingdom of José Rodriguez Fuster, one of the most important Cuban ceramists and painters today. Foster has turned an entire neighborhood in western Havana into a giant art installation that involves locals and their actual homes as part of the exhibit.
After Fusterlandia we took a visit to Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA), the country's top art academy specializing in Music, Modern Dance, Drama, and Visual Arts. Today the buildings are considered Cuba's best example of post-Revolutionary architecture but at the time they were thought too sensual and avant-garde.
Friday marks the last day of our retreat. We will embark on our last tours with an Eclecticism and Art Deco tour of Havana’s Parque Central with architect Victor Marin and a walking tour along the Paseo del Prado.
What an experience! Our group left Cuba reminded of the perspective that travel can provide and we have returned recharged and ready to design.
