Havana – Taller Experimental de Grafica

This is one of the more interesting shops in Havana. The main purpose of this place is as a workshop for artists to learn how to do stencilling or to practice. Once they’re finished, the artworks they produce are then put up for sale. It’s a good place to find “fresh” art, but the sales technique is a little odd to say the least.

After wandering around the foyer for a bit, some dudes came over and asked if I wanted to see the art. Of course, I said, so they lead me out the back, past the stencilling machines and past the guys pressing ink into the paper.

When we got out the back, they tried to open a door for me, but it was locked. After lots of running around, a dude came back. Not with a key, but with a screwdriver and some plies to prise open the lock. Interesting.

I was then escorted into the room. It was small, looked like a cell and was stinking hot. Oh bugger, I thought. I’ve just walked into a small room with two burly dudes in a foreign country. If they wanted to rob me, I’d be stuffed. Luckily, they were legit and showed me the pile of prints.

I started going through them, one at a time, absolutely dripping sweat in the small room on such a hot day. The guys saw I was sweating. Thinking fast, they each grabbed a chunk of cardboard and started fanning me with it. I felt like a Roman Emperor! A sweaty one anyway!

I eventually found a few pictures that were pretty cool and bought them for a very cheap price. The guys thanked me and away I went. It was a little bizarre, but I managed to escape with my life, my wallet and some new pictures. Perfect!