Skip to main content Smithsonian Institution

Catalog Data

Artist:
Alexis Rodríguez-Duarte, born 1962  Search this
Stylist:
Tico Torres, born 1961  Search this
Sitter:
Celia Cruz, 21 Oct 1925 - 16 Jul 2003  Search this
Medium:
Inkjet print
Dimensions:
Image/Sheet: 76.4 × 60.8 cm (30 1/16 × 23 15/16")
Type:
Photograph
Place:
United States\Florida\Dade\Coral Gables
Date:
1994 (printed 2016)
Exhibition Label:
Born Havana, Cuba
Celia Cruz’s dynamic performances, rich voice, and flamboyant attire brought her to the stage of Havana’s famed Tropicana nightclub in the 1950s. Shortly after Fidel Castro seized power of Cuba in 1959, Cruz left the island for a one-year contract in Mexico, never to return. She defected in 1961. Eventually, Cruz settled in New York City, where her music was initially considered old-fashioned. By the 1970s, however, when the new genre of salsa saturated the airwaves and filled the nightclubs, she had become its reina (queen). Her songs, while speaking to pan-Latino audiences, also became a direct connection to Cuba for the thousands of exiles living in the United States and elsewhere in the world. As artist Alexis Rodríguez-Duarte has noted, Cruz “brought [people] home again.” For this portrait session held in Miami, she sang acapella in a traditional guarachera dress while placed against a backdrop that evokes 1950s Havana.
Nacida en La Habana, Cuba
Las dinámicas presentaciones de Celia Cruz, su voz resonante y su llamativo vestuario la propulsaron al escenario del famoso club Tropicana de La Habana en los años cincuenta. Poco después de que Fidel Castro subiera al poder en Cuba en 1959, Cruz abandonó la isla para presentarse en México con contrato de un año, y nunca regresó. En 1961 pidió asilo político. Cruz terminó por radicarse en Nueva York, donde al principio su música se consideró anticuada. No obstante, para los años setenta, cuando el nuevo género de la salsa saturó los programas radiales y clubes nocturnos, Cruz se convirtió en su reina. A la vez que hablaban a un público panamericano, sus canciones ofrecían una conexión directa con la patria a los miles de exiliados cubanos que vivían en Estados Unidos y otros países. Como señala el artista Alexis Rodríguez-Duarte, Cruz “nos trajo de vuelta a casa”. Cuando posó para este retrato en Miami, Cruz cantó a capela vestida de guarachera, con un fondo tropical que evoca La Habana de los años cincuenta.
Topic:
Costume\Jewelry\Earring  Search this
Exterior  Search this
Nature & Environment\Plant\Tree\Palm  Search this
Costume\Jewelry\Necklace\Choker  Search this
Celia Cruz: Female  Search this
Celia Cruz: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Singer  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; acquisition made possible through the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center
Object number:
NPG.2016.78
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
Copyright:
© 1994, Alexis Rodriguez-Duarte
See more items in:
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Location:
Currently not on view
Data Source:
National Portrait Gallery
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4ab74e0ba-2217-425b-915d-6ed9bd627ba4
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_NPG.2016.78