Juan Boza

Cuban-born artist

• Born: May 6, 1941
• Birthplace: Camagüey, Cuba
• Died: March 5, 1991
• Place of death: Brooklyn, New York

Boza’s Afro-Cuban heritage and Santería faith provided the backdrop of his art, including prints, drawings, altars, paintings, and photographs of his installations. He infused his strong religious beliefs into his works, which are pre-Columbian depictions of images related to his faith.

Early Life

Juan Boza Sánchez (BOH-zah) was born on May 6, 1941, in Camagüey, Cuba. By the age of ten, he had decided he wanted to be an artist. He also was a participant in Yoruba/Lucumí religious ceremonies.

After winning a local art competition in his hometown with his Santería-inspired painting La Lucumiguera in 1959, Boza received a scholarship to attend the prestigious La Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes (National School of Fine Arts), also known as San Alejandro, where he studied art from 1960 to 1962. Afterward, he received a scholarship to study at the newly established Escuela Nacional de Arte. He studied there for two years before being expelled in the wake of a student riot. After his dismissal from the school in 1964, Boza became a professional artist and studied lithography. That same year, he was invited to join La Unión de Escritores y Artistas (Artists’ and Writers’ Union).

Boza had his first solo exhibition at the Havana Gallery in 1967, a watershed year in his career. That year, he also began work as a designer at the Coliseo Nacional de Cultura and won the Casa de las Américas Award, a major Cuban cultural prize. In 1971, he was censored and forbidden by the government to work as a professional artist. Before being exiled nine years later, he was sent to a reeducation camp because he was homosexual.

Life’s Work

Boza left Cuba via the Mariel boatlift in 1980 and settled in New York City, where he felt he had to reinvent himself. It was there that he also reconnected with his Afro-Cuban roots and strengthened his Yoruba/Lucumí religious beliefs, which inspired most of his artworks. He recommitted to his faith, an Afro-Cuban Santería religious system in which he was also a priest.

As a young man, Boza was influenced by the works of Roberto Matta and Wilfredo Lam, a prominent Afro-Cuban artist. As his career progressed, however, he offered his distinctive interpretations of traditional iconography in both two- and three-dimensional works.

Although Boza was a talented artist and produced innumerable drawings and paintings, he was best known for his altar installations, many of which were offerings to or representations of Yoruba/Lucumí deities. He used an extensive assortment of organic and manmade materials for the altars, or tronos. Some of the materials included sequined fabric, cellophane, garbage bags, metal, and handicrafts such as bowls and utensils. Boza exhibited his artwork in galleries and museums in New York, Chicago, Miami, Berlin, Barcelona, Mexico City, Milan, Krakow, and San Juan among others. In addition to being hailed as a trailblazer, he received numerous awards for his artwork. He received a Cintas Foundation Fellowship and the Jerome Foundation Fellowship to the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop. His work also was featured in the 1985 documentary Cuba-USA: Three Cuban Artists and New York City.

In 1991, Boza died from an illness related to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) at the height of his professional career. He did not have a will at the time of his death, and as a result, the city of New York claimed temporary ownership of his artwork and other personal belongings. They were held in storage for years while their legal ownership was debated. In addition, Boza was denied a traditional Santería funeral because his friends did not have access to his personal altar in his apartment.

Significance

Boza was a versatile artist who produced paintings, drawings, designs, and installations using a wide variety of manmade and natural materials. He is considered one of the most prominent altar makers, one whose works have influenced countless Afro-Cuban artists. By focusing on themes related to his Yoruba/Lucumí religious beliefs, he defined art in primitive and non-European standards while breaking ground in Afro-Cuban religious iconography.

Bibliography

Conner, Randy P., and David Hatfield Sparks. Queering Creole Spiritual Traditions: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Participation in African-Inspired Traditions in the Americas. New York: Harrington Park Press, 2004. Discusses artistic interpretations of the African diaspora religions, which are tolerant of homosexuality and gender deviation. Information on Boza, his artistic representations related to Santería, and their relationship to his homosexuality is essential.

Morris, Randall. “Juan Boza: Travails of an Artist-Priest.” In Santería Aesthetics in Contemporary Latin American Art, edited by Arturo Lindsay. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1996. Chapter focusing on details of Boza’s life and work. One of the most informative works on the artist.

Rice, Robin. “The Art of Religion: Reading Between the Lines in the Work of a Cuban Artist.” The Philadelphia City Paper, June 17, 1999. Reviews several of Boza’s works on display at the Painted Bride Art Center and discusses their religious basis and significance.

Viera, Ricardo. “Juan Boza: Reinventing Himself.” In Santería Aesthetics in Contemporary Latin American Art, edited by Arturo Lindsay. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1996. Viera discusses Boza’s exile to New York and artistic success there.