| artist's
profile
Xavier Cortada, 35, is a
Cuban-American artist living and working in Miami. Cortada works primarily in acrylic and
oils on canvas, although he has created numerous murals and has an impressive portfolio of
drawings. Like his artist father and uncle before him, Cortada draws inspiration from the
Cuban modernism. His work is also informed by the twisting currents of twentieth century
art, the visual barrage of advertising, the iconography of estampitas religiosas,
Saturday morning cartoons, the stained glass windows of Gesu Catholic Church in Miami, and
importantly, his travels through Africa and Latin America.
The painter's visual heritage can also
be traced along the black lines and collapsing spaces from Pablo Picasso to Amelia Pelaez,
who also inspires Cortada's tropical palette. The portraits of long-necked women and
translucent faces are subversive Modigliani's, while the syncretic sensibilities of
Wifredo Lam influence Cortada's easy blending of symbols and cultures. Cortada slashes and
tortures the canvas with knives and hard-bristled brushes evoking the athletic gestures of
Willem de Kooning. Francis Bacon teaches him to thrust his personal passions and secret
desires on cloth, layers of paint rubbing together creating a bruising picture of the
artist's soul.
The artist improvises and plays on
canvas, manipulating meaning and texture to get his message across. He is also an attorney
and community leader, who combines his artistic talent with his concern for social and
political issues. Among the topics he has explored through his work are community
development, racism, violence, poverty, political freedom, AIDS, and Cuba.
Cortada has exhibited his paintings in
cities across the United States, Latin America, Europe and Africa. He was the first
foreign artist to exhibit in Soweto after the end of apartheid in South Africa. Cortada's
work has been recently shown in solo exhibits at the ArtCenter/South Florida in Miami
Beach (CUBABA),
the Museum of Contemporary Art
in Cuzco, Peru, the Museo Tambo Quirquincho in La Paz (Compartiendo con Bolivia), and the Regional
Historical Museum of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. In November 1998, his work won the Grand
Prize Best of Show in the "Arte + Arte" group exhibit at the Florida Museum of Hispanic and Latin American Art
in Coral Gables, Florida.
Cortada has also painted murals with
community groups and lectured on the use of art as an agent of social change .in places as
diverse as Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
Leadville, Colorado, La Paz, Bolivia and Soweto, South Africa. In Miami, he has
collaborated with museums (the Lowe Art Museum, the Wolfsonian, Miami Youth Museum), and
non-profit groups (including the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind, Centro Campesino, and the
Little Haiti Housing Authority) to create community murals. In addition, he has painted
murals for HBO, MADD, the Indiana Governor's
Office, Miami-Dade Cultural Affairs Council, and Miami-Dade Art in Public Places. In
July 1998, he was commissioned to paint a mural for the 12th
World AIDS Conference in Geneva. In January 1999, Cortada unveiled two
24-foot tall glass mosaic murals on the new Niketown
building at Shops at Sunset Place in South Miami.
Currently, Cortada serves as Artistic
Director of Master Peace
(a school-based art project in Miami-Dade County Public Schools) and PATH (Public Art Transforming Housing in
Miami-Dade Housing Agency). The Miami based artist is also working in his WebStudio, an Internet-based
collaborative art project, which allows participants to interact with the artist through
two webcams and a live chatroom.
honors:
"Xavier Cortada Day"
Proclamation by the City of South Miami, January 6th, 1999.
Awarded Grand Prize "Best
of Show" Award at the Florida Museum of Hispanic and Latin American Art Arte + Arte group show in November
1998, Coral Gables, Florida.
"Xavier Cortada Day"
Proclamation by the City of Miami,
April 4th, 1998.
"Xavier Cortada Day"
Proclamation by the City of Miami
Beach, Florida on April 4, 1998.
"Xavier Cortada Day"
Proclamation by Miami-Dade
County, Florida on April 4, 1998.
Entered into the Congressional Record of
the 105th Congress, First Session, ("Cuban American Artist Xavier Cortada"),
Washington, Wednesday, April, 22nd, 1998.
Presented with a Key to the
Miami-Dade Housing Agency for facilitating the Naranja Public Housing Mural Project,
Miami-Dade County, September 8, 1997.
Chivas Regal Award of Distinction,
Artists Category, Finanlist (1997)
1995 Manhattan Arts International 1995
Cover Art Exhibition, Award of Merit
1995 Berkeley Arts Center 11th
Annual National Juried Exhibition, California.
Awarded Certificate of Appreciation by
the Mayor of Metropolitan Dade County, 1992.
Price Waterhouse/South Florida
Magazine UP & Comers Award (1992)
Entered into the Congressional Record of the 102nd Congress,
Second Session, (Vol. 138, No. 19), Washington, Wednesday, February 19, 1992.
arts awards, presentations, conferences
& like activities:
Fifth International Congress of Educating Cities:
Presentation of paper at the Conference on March 14-17, 1999 in Jerusalem,
Israel.
Presentation of
Bridging the Gap Mural (a
collaborative mural created with the participants of the United Nation's 12th World AIDS
Conference in Geneva) at various charity events in Miami, FL:
3rd Annual Miami Beach SWIM FOR LIFE: Awards
Luncheon and Gala Dinner of the one-mile open-water swim benefiting the South Beach AIDS
Project and the Cancer Lifeline of the Mt. Sinai Medical Center, Breast Center, Miami
beach FL, March 27, 1999.
AIDS Walk 99 Ceremonies on Sunday,
February 21, 1999 in Bayfront Park, Miami, Florida.
Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center,
Inc. Inaugural Annual Dinner at Sheraton Biscayne Bay Hotel on Thursday, February 11,
1999, Miami, FL: Presentation of Bridging the Gap mural (artistic theme for the
event).
The President's Committee on the Arts and
the Humanities' "Gaining the Arts Advantage: Lessons Learned in
Miami" forum panelist, Thursday, February 4, 1999, Miami Art Museum, 101 W. Flagler
Street, Miami, FL.
NFL Player's Party for Superbowl XXXIII:
Dedication of "Celebration" painting, speak on the Special Olympics Mural
project, and sign posters during Gospel Brunch to benefit Special Olympics, Miami
Beach, FL on January 31st, 1999.
1999 Dade Cultural
Alliance's Ambassador of Arts nominee, Awards Ceremony and Dinner, Friday,
January 22nd, 1999, The Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables, FL
1998 Awarded Grand Prize "Best of
Show" Award at the Florida Museum of Hispanic and Latin American Art Arte + Arte group show in November
1998, Coral Gables, Florida.
1998 Selected as the official print
artist for ARTEXPO Inaugural
South Miami, Florida, 1998.
1998 Commissioned to
create "Bridging the Gap", a collaborative mural to be co-created by the
participants of the United Nation's 12th World AIDS
Conference in Geneva, June 28 - July 3, 1998.
1998 Miami Dade Art in Public Places
artist residency at Palm Springs Middle School in Hialeah, FL.
1998 Commissioned
by NACo (National Association of Counties, Washington, D.C.) to produce a painting on the theme
of public safety.
1998 Commissioned by the Wolfsonian/FIU Museum to create a
community-driven mural in conjunction with its Public Works exhibition, featuring the
mural studies from the 1930's.
1997 Niketown Miami--commissioned by Nike to create three paintings for the new
Miami Niketown, two of which will be enlarged as 24 ft. by 20 ft. glass tile murals and
places on the exterior of the building, facing the 100,000 drivers who travel US-1
everyday.
1997 Selected by Miami-Dade Art in Public Places to create a
series of community-driven murals in four public housing sites; the project is being
implemented in collaboration with the Miami-Dade Housing Agency and its Public Housing
Police Bureau.
1997 Exhibition Committee, South
Florida Art Center, Miami Beach, Florida
1997 Artistic License: a
special painting and writing project in collaboration with Poet Jeffrey Philps, the Art
and English teachers at Coral Gables Elementary School and thirty-four of their students.
The program, implemented in five elementary schools, is sponsored by the Miami-Dade
Cultural Affairs Council and Dade County Public Schools.
Profiled in ArtWorks! Prevention Programs for Youth &
Communities, a publication sponsored by National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the
Tucson-Pima Arts Council, and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Dept. of Health
and Human Services to showcase model national programs (1997).
1997 Community grant from Cultural
Affairs Council of Metro-Dade County to develop a community outreach and
collaborative mural project with the University of Miami Lowe Art Museum
and the Little Haiti Housing Association.
1997- present Children's
Cultural Coalition, Board Member, Miami, Florida
1997 Community grant from Cultural
Affairs Council of Metro-Dade County to develop "Art as Power", a
community outreach collaborative project with the University of Miami Lowe Art Museum and the Cuban
American National Council's Little Havana Institute, an alternative school
targeting Hispanic youth at risk of dropping-out of high school.
1997 Community Partnership for
the Arts & Culture, Planning Council-- a Lila Wallace Fund supported
initiative of the Dade Community Foundation
1997 Creative
Partnerships for Prevention--Using Art and the Humanities to Build Resiliency in
Youth, Training Workshop, Bakehouse Art Complex
1997 National Art Education
Association, member
1996 Community grant from Cultural
Affairs Council of Metro-Dade County to establish the Murales del Centro
Project in an art shack at Centro Campesino Farmworker Center CDC -- facilitating
gang-involved children of migrant workers in creation of art murals and projects, see: centro art shack
1996 Community grant from Cultural
Affairs Council of Metro Dade to implement the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind "New Visions Project" --bringing
together clients, volunteers and neighborhood (Little Havana) residents to create murals
challenging societal perceptions and biases about the visually impaired
1996 4th International
Congress on Education Cities: The Arts and Humanities as Agents for Social Change,
Chicago, Illinois
1996 Miami Arts Exchange (MAX), member,
Miami, FL
1996 Tertulia/descarga/blablabla/salon: The
relationship between art and power, with Cuban dissident Yndamiro Restano
in the artist's home, Miami, Florida
1996 South Florida Art Center Ground
Level Advisory Committee, Miami Beach, FL
education:
Juris Doctor
University of Miami School of Law, Coral Gables, Florida
December 18, 1991
Master of Public
Administration
University of Miami Graduate School, Coral Gables, Florida
December 19, 1991
Bachelor of Arts
University
of Miami College of Arts and Sciences, Coral Gables, Florida
December 18, 1986
fellowship:
National Leadership Fellows Program for JOIN TOGETHER, a National Resource for
Communities Fighting Substance Abuse funded by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation to the Boston University School of Public Health (1993-present).
licensure:
Admitted to the Florida Bar, June 9, 1992, and thereby
licensed as an Attorney and Counselor at Law in all Courts of the State of Florida
(1992-present).
media profiles:
 |
Cortada, an attorney and community
leader, combines his artistic talent with his concern for social and political issues.
Among the topics he has explored through his work are community development, racism,
violence, poverty, political freedom, AIDS, and Cuba.
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professional
experience:
Professional and Community Artist
(concurrently)
Attorney-at-Law (June 1992-present)
Adjunct Assistant Professor of
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami School of Medicine, Center for
Family Studies (Dec 1993-present)
Director, Local Initiatives Support
Corporation (LISC) South Dade Development Program (July 1995--July 1997)
Annie E. Casey Mental Health Initiative
for Urban Children in East Little Havana, Miami, Florida, Interim Project Director (Nov
1993-May 1994)
Director, Juvenile Violence and
Delinquency Prevention Programs and Research Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, University
of Miami School of Medicine Center on Minority Families/Center for Family Studies/ Spanish
Family Guidance Center (Oct 1992-Nov 1993)
Executive Director, Regis House, an
adolescent drug and alcohol abuse center in Miami, Florida (1990-1992)
selected consulting activities:
| 1995 |
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South Florida Coordinator, Floridians for Access to Justice--a campaign
sponsored by The Florida Bar, The Florida Bar Foundation and Florida Legal Services to
preserve federal funding of the Legal Services Corporation |
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| 1995 |
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Provided volunteer consulting through FAVA/CA to the people
of Costa Rica. |
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| 1995 |
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Central Rockies Prevention Project,
a special project of Colorado's 5th Judicial District Attorney's Office. Served as a
Community Development consultant and developed a Needs Assessment for Hispanics in
Leadville, Colorado. |
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| United States Information Agency--Guest
Speaker/Presenter in: |
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1994 |
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University of Miami Center for Family
Studies Adjunct Faculty and Consultant to: |
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| 1994 |
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East Little Havana Community
Development Corporation--provided technical assistance in the development of the
neighborhood agendas and strategic plan for the Metropolitan Dade County Empowerment
Zone Application. |
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| 1994 |
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United States Embassy in Bogota,
Columbia, Narcotics Affairs Section-- Keynote Speaker for Surgir's International
Conference in Medellin, Colombia. |
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| 1993 |
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Washington State Migrant Council--Keynote
Speaker for the Hispanic State Conference on Child Abuse Prevention and Intervention |
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| 1993 |
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United States Information Agency--Guest
Speaker in Honduras, Guatemala
and Colombia |
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| 1993 |
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Mid-South Summer School, University
of Arkansas at Little Rock--Presenter |
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| 1992 |
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United States Information Agency --
Guest Speaker in Santa Cruz, Bolivia |
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| 1992 |
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Center for Substance Abuse Prevention National
Volunteer Training Center -- Training of Trainers for Hispanics; Training of Trainers
for the Religious Community |
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| 1992 |
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Dade Community Foundation --
Neighborhood Grants Program consultant |
professional papers/presentations:
Available upon request: Extensive
presentations before civic and professional groups throughout the United States, Latin
America, Africa and Europe.
Available upon request:
Author of various published articles, including those in ABA publications and in
international media; co- author of a CSAT monograph on Juvenile Justice treatment
interventions, 1995; and co-author of eight articles and five abstracts in refereed
clinical journals during 1983-1987.
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Xavier Cortada
The artist works primarily
in acrylic on canvas, although he has created numerous murals and has an impressive
portfolio of drawings. Like his art, his civic involvement is aimed at effectuating
positive, lasting social change.
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leadership:
| 1988-1997 |
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Regis House Adolescent Drug and
Alcohol Abuse Center, Miami, Florida |
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- President (1989-90)
- Vice Chair (1990-1997)
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| 1988-Present |
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Local Board Member, Selective
Service System (Draft Board) |
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| 1995-1997 |
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Health Crisis Network, Miami,
Florida |
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- Board of Directors
- Advocacy Committee, Chair
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| 1997-present |
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Children's Cultural Coalition,
Board of Directors, Miami, FL |
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| 1997-present |
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University of Miami School of
Law Children and Youth Law Clinic, Advisory Board |
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| 1994-1997 |
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Dade County Bar Association Juvenile
Courts Committee, Chair |
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| 1993-1996 |
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Dade County Juvenile Justice Council,
Executive Committee |
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| 1993-1996 |
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Miami River Neighborhood Restoration
Corporation, Member |
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| 1993-1995 |
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City of Miami City-wide Community
Development Advisory Board |
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| 1993-1994 |
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Founding Organizer and Advisor to Vecinos
En Accion, a grass-roots neighborhood corporation in Miami's East Little Havana
neighborhood |
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| 1992 |
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Adolescent Juvenile Justice Task
Force, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
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| 1992 |
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Founding Organizer and Facilitator of
the Wynwood Youth Group in La Mission San Juan Bautista of Corpus Christi
Catholic Church in Miami, Florida |
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| 1992 |
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Member, appointed by the Metropolitan
Dade County Mayor to the County’s Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board |
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| 1991-1993 |
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Chair, Advisory Board to
Metropolitan Dade County Hispanic Family Development Project |
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| 1991-1993 |
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Chair, City of Miami Youth
Task Force, Miami, Florida. |
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| 1991-1992 |
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Hispanic Working Group Member, The
Miami Coalition for a Drug-Free Community |
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| 1991 |
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Panel Chair, Florida Foster Care
Review Panel |
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| 1990-1993 |
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Chair, Membership Committee, Dade
County Prevention Network for Alcohol and Other Drugs |
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| 1988-1990 |
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Vice Chair, City of Miami Mayor's Committee
on Youth Gang Activity |
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| 1990-1991 |
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Voting Delegate, American Bar
Association House of Delegates |
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| 1989-90 |
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National Vice Chair, American
Bar Association Law Student Division |
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| 1987 |
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White House Advance Team for the
1987 Visit to Miami of Pope John Paul II, Miami, Florida. |
other honors:
United Way Dorothy Shula Award,
Finalist (1992).
Vice President's Award for Service,
University of Miami (1991).
University of Miami Fraternity
Alumnus of the Year Award (1991).
Awarded Certificate of Appreciation by
the Mayor of the City of Miami, January 20, 1989.
Awarded Medal of the City of
Miami Beach by the Mayor and the City Commission, June 23, 1990.
Silver Key Award, American Bar
Association Law Student Division (1989).
Iron Arrow, the highest honor
attained at the University of Miami
Omicron Delta Kappa National
Leadership Honor Society
- President, University of Miami
(1988)
Listed in Who's Who Among Students in
American Colleges and Universities (1985).
The Miami Herald Silver Knight Award
(1982).
REFERENCES:
Available upon request
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