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    • I Was Cuba

    Treasures from the Ramiro Fernandez Collection

    By Kevin Kwan,Interview by Peter Castro

    9-3/8 x 6-1/4 in; 304 pp;
    b/w and color images throughout
    Hardcover
    September 2007
    ISBN 9780811860536
    ISBN10 0811860531

    SKU# 9780811860536

    1 Review(s)
    $27.50

    Quick Overview

    While most think of Cuba as a mythical island of rum, rumba, and revolution, period photographs reveal a more complexplace. I Was Cuba is an original look at Cuban history as seen through the Ramiro Fernandez Collectionarguably the world's lea...

    I Was Cuba



    I Was Cuba

    While most think of Cuba as a mythical island of rum, rumba, and revolution, period photographs reveal a more complexplace. I Was Cuba is an original look at Cuban history as seen through the Ramiro Fernandez Collectionarguably the world's leading archive of Cuban photos and ephemera. I Was Cuba showcases rare, vernacular images from the nineteenth century through the revolutionary period, exploring the everyday and the eccentric. With texts from famed Cuban writer Reinaldo Arenas (Before Night Falls), this captivating volume is an intimate view into a bygone era of glamour, political upheaval, and astounding visual culture.

     

    Peter Castro was named managing editor of People en Espaol in 2006. Prior to joining People en Espaol, Castro worked at sister publication People magazine, most recently serving as executive editor overseeing entertainment coverage.

    Ramiro Fernandez was born in Havana to a family involved in the pharmaceutical industry. He left Cuba in 1960, settling first in Palm Beach County and then in New York, where he was a photography editor at Time Inc. for 25 years, working for such titles as Entertainment Weekly, Sports Illustrated, People, and People En Espaol. Fernandez first began to collect at the suggestion of his grandmother, who foresaw the coming turmoil and urged him to collect images of a Cuba that was fast disappearing. As a witness to the revolution in his youth, Fernandez's consuming passion has been to build a collection that can serve as a testament to the Cuba he remembers.

    Kevin Kwan is a book packager and creative consultant who has created projects with some of the world's leading artists, designers, publishers, and institutions. He has been involved in the creation of numerous acclaimed visual books, including (un)Fashion by Tibor + Maira Kalman, Elizabeth Taylor: My Love Affair with Jewelry, and Spectacle by David Rockwell with Bruce Mau. In 2004, he produced Presenting Celia Cruz, the celebrated photography tribute to Cuba's "Queen of Salsa."

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    Customer Reviews (Write a review)

    beautiful memoires of Cuba.

    10/11/11| lisa collins
    The lay out of this photographic collection is very well done , & I would recommend it to anyone who has interest in photography, politics, history, entertainment...it covers all aspects of life in Cuba as we do not know it.
    I have gifted this to 4 people so far, & had same results each time. The 1st copy, I purchased in London , my husband stole it from my library collection.
    I recommend this wonderful book of emotions, phrases, & the life celebrated in Cuba during the hardships. Excellent & still one of my favorites...