I was introduced to the prints of Osmeivy Ortaga a few years ago while he was student at the San Alejandro Academy Art by his professor Eduardo Hernández Santos. His woodcuts are classical in structure; imagine the style of Barry Moser with Cuban sensibilities. In the Spring  2010 we met during the creation of Poder and I had the opportunity to view his work first hand. His newer prints use the common cotton fabric every Cuban family buys to mop their floors. With this humble raw cotton cloth he creates the most complicated reduction relief prints I have ever seen. He is currently a printmaking professor at ISA- The Institute of Superior Art.

I have created a youtube video to show and explain the characteristics of Ortega’s work.

Last fall, Ortega showcased his work at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland. Here’s a link for a short article about how he became involved with the Cleveland Institute of Arts’ Cuba project.