Fototeca de Cuba

CA4
Art Gallery / Studio
CA Ranking: 4
Best for: The largest, most valuable collection of Cuban photographs. Great exhibitions.
Open: 10am-5pm Tues-Sat
Admission: Free
Mercaderes # 307 e/ Muralla y Teniente Rey, Habana Vieja
(+53)7862 - 2530
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    Inaugurated in 1986 to preserve, study and promote Cuba’s photographic heritage, Fototeca de Cuba, mid-way along the east side of the plaza, boasts the nation’s largest, most valuable collection of Cuban photographs as well as a considerable amount of documents related to the history of photography. Although its exhibit space is extremely modest, Fototeca—housed in the former Casa de Juan Mata—holds around 12 exhibitions a year in its two galleries. The ground floor Galería Joaquín Blez is mostly devoted to works by young neophyte photographers. Upstairs the Galería María Eugenia Haya exhibits works by established Cuban photographers as well as international figures.

     

    The center also hosts a number of events, including lectures, classes, workshops and competitions aimed at promoting young photographers in Cuba and overseas, and to encouraging the development of national photography. Noviembre Fotográfico, an event promoted by this institution, occupies most of Havana’s exhibition rooms throughout November. The screening of photographs of the Fototeca’s collections on the walls of building in Plaza Vieja has become a very popular event during Noviembre Fotográfico.

    
  • Teatro Martí

    Teatro Martí  LH 4

    Elegant and simple, this Romanesque-style theater opened in 1884 as Teatro Irijoa and changed its name to Teatro Martí in 1900. Because of its location in Habana Vieja and its great acoustics, it achi …

    Sloppy Joe’s Bar

    Sloppy Joe’s Bar  LH 5-

    6pm is Sloppy Joe cocktail hour again at the original Sloppy Joe’s saloon, an iconic Cuban bar that reopened Friday April 12, 2013 after a nearly 50-year break in its original location. The restoratio …

    Parque John Lennon

    Parque John Lennon  LH 4

    Occupying a whole block, the park delimited by 17, 15, 6 and 8 Streets had been unofficially known as John Lennon for years and had been a popular meeting place for young people and sometimes imprompt …

    La Bodeguita del Medio

    La Bodeguita del Medio  LH 4

    Back 1942, this well-known restaurant was a small grocery store. Its owner, Ángel Martínez, began to sell food as the number of customers increased. One day, journalist Leandro Garcia, a regular costu …

    Jardín Diana de Gales

    Jardín Diana de Gales  LH 4

    The distinctly non-communist fairytale crown atop a wrought-iron archway is something of a giveaway for one of Havana’s most delightful gardens, the Jardín Diana de Gales, inaugurated in 2000 in memor …

    Calle Obispo

    Calle Obispo  LH 4

    This important street goes back to 1519, only four years after the founding of Havana. It was conceived as a narrow thoroughfare to protect the people from the sun. Throughout its existence, it has ha …

    Group of houses on Cárdenas Street

    Group of houses on Cárdenas Street  LH 4

    It is unusual in the city to find in such a short stretch so many interesting examples of Art Nouveau constructions. Only recently has the City Historian’s Office begun restoration works on some of th …

    Centro Cultural El Gran Palenque

    Centro Cultural El Gran Palenque  LH 4

    El Gran Palenque is home to the world-renowned dance troupe Conjunto Folklórico Nacional de Cuba. Opened in 1997, it has its origins in the Patio de la Rumba, founded in 1982 by folklorist Rogelio Mar …

    Planetario

    Planetario  LH 4

    Adjoining Fototeca on the square’s east side, the Planetarium is an interactive cultural center inaugurated on December 21, 2009. It provides a fascinating look into the origins and structure of the u …

    Museo de la Farmacia Habanera La Reunión

    Museo de la Farmacia Habanera La Reunión  LH 4

    Opened in 2004 in the building where the old pharmacy La Reunión was located, this museum is considered the most important pharmaceutical complex in Cuba and one of the largest and most beautiful in t …

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