Cintas Foundation Takes Historic Step To Allow For Artists In Cuba To Complete In Its Fellowship Awards Program

CINTAS FOUNDATION TAKES HISTORIC STEP TO ALLOW FOR ARTISTS IN CUBA TO COMPETE IN ITS FELLOWSHIP AWARDS PROGRAM

The CINTAS Foundation is pleased to announce that its Fellowship Program will now fulfill the original intent of its founder, Oscar B. Cintas, and offer Fellowships to Cubans and those of Cuban descent – regardless of whether they live in or outside of Cuba. In doing so, we are abiding by the purpose stated in the certificate of incorporation that created the CINTAS Foundation in 1957. The Board awards Fellowships in the categories of visual arts, music composition, creative writing and architecture & design and determines which Fellowships are awarded in any given year. This year the Foundation is offering three Fellowships in the amount of $20,000 each: the CINTAS–Knight Foundation Fellowship in Visual Arts; the CINTAS Foundation–Brandon Fradd Fellowship in Music Composition; and the CINTAS Foundation Fellowship in Architecture & Design. Competition applications are due by June 1, 2017.

“In keeping with the original mission of Oscar B. Cintas in 1957 to reward Cuban art anywhere in the world and, like other respected nonprofit institutions, we have decided to open our fellowship competitions to creators on the island. By taking this step, we have the possibility of boosting their careers as we have done and will continue to do with hundreds of artists, architects, writers and musicians in exile. Further, there are talented artists in Cuba facing financial hardships that would benefit tremendously from this unique opportunity,” said Victor Deupi, President of CINTAS.

Submissions for the Fellowship competitions are reviewed by panels of highly qualified, independent jurors from each artistic discipline. The Board of the CINTAS Foundation makes the final decision after considering the jury recommendations.  To apply, applicants should follow the procedures outlined on the CINTAS Foundation website, www.cintasfoundation.org.

The CINTAS Foundation is the benchmark for promoting Cuban visual arts, architecture and design, music composition, and creative writing. For the past 55 years, the Foundation has continually done so, in support of Cuban exile artists. “If now the CINTAS Foundation can also support talented Cuban artists whose work may otherwise not have been recognized, then we are fulfilling our founder’s mission,” said Deupi.

The CINTAS Fellowship Program is administered by the CINTAS Foundation Board and the Miami Dade College Museum of Art and Design.

About the Cintas Fellowship Program

The CINTAS Fellowship Program encourages creative development by awarding Fellowships in architecture and design, creative writing, music composition and visual arts. The CINTAS Foundation was established with funds from the estate of Oscar B. Cintas (1887-1957), former Cuban ambassador to the United States, a prominent industrialist and patron of the arts. In June 2011, the CINTAS Foundation entered into an extended loan to MDC’s Museum of Art and Design of the CINTAS Fellows Collection. It is comprised of nearly 300 pieces by artists of Cuban descent who have received prestigious CINTAS Fellowships, awarded since 1963. The Fellows range from Carmen Herrera to Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Maria Martinez-Cañas, Teresita Fernandez, Pulitzer Prize winner Oscar Hijuelos, multiple-Obie winner Maria Elena Fornes, architect Andres Duany, Latin Grammy and Grammy nominated composer Tania Leon and many others. www.cintasfoundation.org.

About MDC Museum of Art and Design

MDC Museum of Art and Design provides open, critical, and collaborative frameworks for artistic experimentation and interdisciplinary risk-taking that explores the intersections of art, design, and other art forms with cultural action. MOAD advances Miami Dade College’s core values, contributing to the intellectual life of the college, engaging students and audiences from the community and the world beyond.