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Lycoming College’s Film and Video Arts Program in the Department of Communication is pleased to present “Havana Revisited: An Architectural Heritage,” a solo exhibition of photography and video by Cathryn Griffith. The exhibition opens Oct. 18, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. in the College’s Digital Media Gallery, and is free and open to the public. Any viewings after the opening will be available by appointment only.
Griffith’s work documents the history, preservation and present uses of Havana’s most important buildings and urban spaces. The city’s architecture provides an important window on the changing forces that have shaped the country’s history, from her settlement as a fortified trading post through successive periods of Spanish colonial rule, independence, United States protectorate, and revolution. She juxtaposes early 1900's hand-colored postcard images of Havana city scenes with recent color photographs of the same scenes, taken from the same vantage point. Griffith culled the historical images from her collection of over 700 vintage postcards of Havana, and made the corresponding photographs during multiple trips to Cuba in recent years.
The exhibition is an invaluable guide to students of Cuban culture and the international influences that shaped it in the 20th century, those interested in Latin American history, students and practitioners of architecture, historic preservation, and urban planning, Cuban Americans, and all those who look forward to the opening of the vibrant country to visitors from the United States. The exhibition consists of thirty 16” x 20” frames (each containing a pair of images), two maps and a 20-minute videos.
Griffith’s work has been exhibited most notably at the Embassy of the United States in Havana; David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, Harvard University, Mass.; Havana Biennial, Havana, Invitational exhibition; Vermont Center for Photography, Vt; Griffin Museum of Photography, Mass; Davis Orton Gallery, N.Y.; Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa, Venice, Italy; and Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Mass.
The Lycoming College Digital Media Gallery, located in the Mass Communications Building on Franklin Avenue and Fourth Street, contributes to the city’s arts culture and provides a way for the College to become more involved with the community surrounding it. Students studying film and video arts have the opportunity to interact with visiting artists, as well as learn first-hand about the inner workings of a gallery.