Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav file. Duration is 1 hr., 9 min.
Summary:
An interview of Demi conducted 1997 November 20, by Juan A. Martínez, in Demi's home/studio, Miami, Florida, for the Archives of American Art.
Demi speaks of her birthplace, Camaguey, Cuba; the death of her father in 1960, and being sent to Puerto Rico in 1971; her move to New York, and arrival in Miami in 1978; her theater studies at Miami Dade Community College. She recalls an opening at the Meeting Point Gallery in Coral Gables in 1980, where she met her husband, painter Arturo Rodriguez. She talks about her first painting in 1984, the role Arturo plays in her life, her first exhibition at the Cuban Museum of Arts and Culture in 1987, and the importance of touching the human spirit.
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Demi, 1997 November 20. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art's website.
Funding:
This interview received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. Funding for the digital preservation of this interview received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. The translation of this interview transcript was provided by Oksana Salamatina.
Biography Note:
Demi (1955- ) is a painter from Miami, Florida. Demi (who uses only her first name) is a self-taught artist born in Cuba. Her husband is the painter Arturo Rodriguez.
Language Note:
Interview is in Spanish.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics, and administrators.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
