Short Summary

Cuba brings to mind many things. Sun. Sea. Cigars. Revolution, And music. Of many varieties, but perhaps none more vibrant than Jazz.  Since 1978, Cuba's capital, Havana, has hosted an international Jazz festival, Jazz Plaza, that not only showcases the island's own astounding musicians, but also attracts artists from around the world.

Over the years, a number of photographers have dedicated themselves to capturing on film the spirit of these jazz performers. Seven of them have now come together to put on an exhibition showcasing their work, and bringing back memories of many of the musicians who have appeared on the Jazz Plaza stage. And to collect these in a book, so as to share this photographic celebration of Cuba's jazz more widely.

Abel Carmenate, Xavier Carvajal, Maité Fernández, Elio Miniello, Enrique Smith, Gonzalo Vidal and Jorge Villa present very personal views of the jazz performances they document. The images themselves becoming silent participants in the events that they show, bringing them back to life, and demonstrating that without photography, Jazz would not be the same.

What We Need & What You Get

The total amount that we are seeking to ensure that we can succeed in this project is quite modest. With £4,000, we can guarantee the exhibition, first publication of the book, and its release to the world and in Cuba itself.

As a thank you for your support, we would like to offer you:

• for a contribution of £10, a copy of the Cuban exhibition catalogue, signed by the photographers;
• for a contribution of £25, a copy of the published book (RRP £39.95), in advance of its public release;
• for a contribution of £50, we will send to you a copy of the book, personally signed by each of the photographers;
• and for a contribution of £100, you will receive not only a signed copy of the book, but also a set of seven high-quality photographic prints (20 x 30cm) taken from the book, one by each of the seven photographers (you will get to choose which images you would like).

We are committed to this project, regardless of whether or not we reach our funding goal. The funds we receive will be used to prioritise: i) supporting the photographers in printing and mounting their photographs for the exhibition in Havana; and ii) ensuring a print-run of the book (even if this needs to be a smaller run than intended), and the distribution of copies to Cuba.

If we succeed in surpassing the goal, then the extra funds will be used to: i) print more copies of the book, so as to make it more widely available; ii) fund a publicity campaign, to spread the word about the project (exhibition and book); iii) provide funding to the photographers, to support them in their ongoing work.

The Impact

The project has already secured space in Havana’s Museo de Bellas Artes for the exhibition which will be mounted this November; and our intention is to launch the accompanying book first during the London Jazz Festival in November, and then in Havana itself during Jazz Plaza 2025.   In fact the renowned founder of the Jazz Plaza Festival, Bobby Carcassés, has himself contributed a foreword to the book.

But we need your help. The economic conditions in Cuba are precarious, and it is difficult for artists, writers and publishers to obtain the necessary material to share such cultural     contributions with the world.  We are looking to secure funding to print and mount the photographic images for exhibition; to print the accompanying book, as well as to ensure that enough copies of this will be available in Cuba itself for distribution; and to hold launch events during the jazz festivals of London and Havana. 

Your support will help us to share Cuba’s cultural life with the world, visually celebrating the musical excitement of Havana’s jazz scene.

Risks & Challenges

The current conditions in Cuba can lead to difficulties in organising such projects. Some of the challenges have already been overcome. The Cuban-based coordinator of the project (Gonzalo Vidal) has many years experience in the practicalities of organising cultural events, in particular exhibitions, in Cuba. He has already negotiated the space for the exhibition at the Museo de Bellas Artes in November; a second exhibition, and presentation of the book, during Jazz Plaza 2025; and the involvement of Jazz Plaza founder, Bobby Carcassés, who has provided a preface for the book and support for the exhibition.

It is very difficult to publish or print anything in Cuba itself at present. For this reason, publication of the book will be by the small London-based independent publisher, Amaurea Press - which already specialises in the publication of Cuba-related work, and whose director (Jonathan Curry-Machado) is himself very familiar with Cuba, and has worked closely with Gonzalo Vidal and others on many Cuba-related cultural projects. Through Amaurea, we can guarantee that the book will be published, and be made available.

Curry-Machado has connections with Cuban jazz musicians based in London, which will facilitate a successful launch of the book in London. Meanwhile, Gonzalo Vidal (and the other Cuban-based photographers) are well-placed to promote both exhibition and book in Havana - and potentially to take both elsewhere in Cuba. The extensive social networks of all those involved offer a good opportunity for promoting the project internationally; as will the connection not only with the organisers of the Jazz Plaza Festival (in particular Bobby Carcassés), but also with the musicians who are featured in the exhibition and book.

One significant difficulty is how to import copies of the book into Cuba, there being significant restrictions on this. However, given the cultural nature of the book, it should be possible to obtain a special licence from the Cuban authorities for up to 300 copies of the book to be taken in to the country duty free. The project's coordinator in Havana, Gonzalo Vidal, is well-placed to negotiate this.

Other Ways You Can Help

Even if you don't feel that you are able to contribute financially to the project, we would be very happy for your support in other ways. Please share our campaign with your own contacts, and anybody you think might be interested. Indiegogo has some useful share tools to make this easy.

Thank you for your support!