Cuban Architecture: A Historical Legacy

Saturday, May 15, 2010 ~ 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The Cuban Cultural Center of New York celebrates its 9th Annual Congress, in association with The Society of Cuban-American Engineers and Architects, and co-sponsored by The Cooper Union, The AIANY Global Dialogues Committee, The Architectural League and The Municipal Art Society

Morning Program

All sessions of the program will include historical films and audiovisuals

8:00 – Registration / Continental breakfast

8:45 – Welcoming Remarks
Manuel Castedo (Cuban Cultural Center of New York)
Paul Echániz (Society of Cuban-American Engineers and Architects)
Anthony Vidler (The Cooper Union)

8:50 – Dedication In Memoriam to Mario Romañach
María Romañach (Romañach Architects)

9:00 – Keynote Address
Historical Overview and Legacy of Cuban Architecture
Nicolás Quintana
Presenter: Ysrael Seinuk (The Cooper Union)

9:40 – The Colonial Period and the Cuban Republic

The First Four Centuries: From Bohíos to New World Crossroads
Narciso Menocal (University of Wisconsin)

La Habana Republicana 1902-1940
Raúl L. Rodríguez, AIA (Rodríguez and Quiroga Architects Chartered)
Carlos Alberto Fleitas (AECOM)

The Modern Movement: From Rationalism to Regionalism
Eduardo Luis Rodriguez (Author – The Havana Guide)

Moderator: Rachel Carley (Author – Cuba: 400 Years of Architectural Heritage)

Afternoon Program

12-1:15 – Lunch Break

1:30 – Revolution and Post-Revolution

Construction and Deconstruction in Revolutionary Cuba: From 1959 to the Present
Belmont Freeman (Belmont Freeman Architects)

The Art of Making Ruins
Florian Borchmeyer (Filmmaker, Raros Media)

The Restoration Project
Hansel Hernández Navarro (Architectural conservator and historian)

The Architecture of Exile: Cuban Architecture Outside Cuba
Hervin Romney (Founding partner of Arquitectonica)

Moderator: Manuel Pereiras (SCAEA)

4:00 – Art Exhibit (Co-sponsored by Cuba Art NY)
, Merienda, books, DVDs and CDs

4:20 – A Special Tribute
Guest of Honor: Ricardo Porro
Presenter: Josef Asteinza

5:00 – Cuban Architecture and Urbanism Full Cycle

A Colloquium on Present Trends and a Post-Revolutionary Future
A round table by some of the most outstanding Cuban personalities in today’s architectural landscape, who will be touching on a variety of topics, including urban planning and development in a post-revolutionary resurgent economy.

Moderator: James S. Russell (Bloomberg News)

7:30 – Concert

The Music and Architecture of a Romantic City with Chico Álvarez and Brisas del Malecón

Concert Program

The Music and Architecture of a Romantic City
Starring Chico Álvarez and Brisas del Malecón

Amidst Havana’s architectural rennaissance of the 1940’s and 1950’s, Cuba also experienced a golden era in popular music, producing a plethora of romantic danzones, sones and boleros that made lovers swoon.

This concert has been conceived as a nostalgic tribute to that bygone era, when the sensuous pastel landscape of a city that had been long proclaimed the Paris of the Americas, sang its heart out to the world.

This concert is sponsored
 by the Music Program of the Cuban Cultural Center of New York and is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs

Those who would like to attend the concert ONLY, must register IN ADVANCE at CCCOFNY@AOL.COM and pay $30 at the door.

The musicians:

CHICO ÁLVAREZ, voice and percussion; 
MANUEL CARRO, voice and percussion; 
LINO FERNÁNDEZ, percussion; 
OCTAVIO PONCE, flute, sax, voice and piano; 
STEVE GLUZBAND, trompet; 
TIFFANY RODRÁGUEZ, violin –TBC–
PABLO MOYA, tres and voice
JORGE BRINGAS, bass and voice

Special Guest Artist: RAÚL AZPIAZU, voice

Featuring the greatest hits of the 40’s and 50’s, as well as enduring classics, among them:
Obsesión, 
Lágrimas negras, 
Y tú, qué has hecho
, Inolvidable
, Perfidia, 
Cómo fue,
 Contigo en la distancia, 
Nosotros
, Los aretes de la luna
, Almendra
And many, many more…