About the Artist
October 15, 1953 - July 9, 2010. Cienfuegos, Cuba.
Biography - A self-taught artist, Montebravo began to paint in 1980 and had his first solo exhibition in 1984. He lived throughout his career in the town of Cienfuegos, where he was a leading member of the art community. He was an enthusiastic mentor to many younger artists. Montebravo painted strong portrayals of religious figures, particularly the orishas, or Santeria deities. Many of his paintings depict birds, animals and the lush Cuban plant life, with a strength which suggests an allegorical or religious symbolism as well. He exhibited individually and collectively, in Europe and the United States as well as in Cuba. Montebravo was featured in an article by Joan Pearlman in the Folk Art Messenger (Winter/Spring 2001).
Monte was featured in many exhibits at Indigo Arts Gallery between 1999 and 2010. In 2002 he was able to visit our Philadelphia gallery. In the course of one day at Indigo Arts he painted the Infanta de Filadelphia. Monte fell ill in September 2009, and sadly passed away on July 9th, 2010.
In the fall and winter of 2014-2015 Indigo Arts presented Escenas Fantasticas, a retrospective of Montebravo's work.
View his Artist's Statement HERE.
