Oral history interview with Arturo Rodríguez
odd: label: General
content: Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 17 min.
name: label: Interviewee
content: Rodríguez, Arturo, 1956-
label: Interviewer
content: Martínez, Juan A.
label: Names
content: De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997
topic: label: Topic
content: Artists -- Florida -- Miami -- Interviews
label: Topic
content: Expatriate artists -- Florida -- Miami -- Interviews
label: Topic
content: Artists -- Cuba -- Interviews
label: Topic
content: Cuban American artists
label: Topic
content: Hispanic American artists
label: Topic
content: Cuban American art
label: Topic
content: Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Florida -- Miami
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics, and administrators.
creator: label: Interviewee
content: Rodríguez, Arturo, 1956-
label: Interviewer
content: Martínez, Juan A.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Arturo Rodríguez (1956- ) is a painter from Miami, Fla. Rodriguez is a self-taught artist born in Cuba. His wife is the painter, Demi.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 63 Pages (Transcript)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1997 November 14
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.rodrig97
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Pages
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
label: Type
content: Interviews
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Interviews
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: An interview of Arturo Rodríguez conducted 1997 November 14, by Juan A. Martínez, in Rodriquez's home/studio, Miami, Fla., for the Archives of American Art.
label: Scope and Contents
content: Rodriguez speaks of his birthplace, Ranchuelo, Cuba, his early interest in drawing, his move to Madrid at 16, and his self-directed art education. He discusses the intertwined relationship of literature, poetry, and music. He comments on Spanish realists such as Antonio Lopez Quintanilla and American expressionists Willem de Kooning and others. He also recalls his exhibitions and art collectors, particularly Judith and William Ladner. He describes his paintings as a combination of expressionism, realism, surrealism, abstraction, and a pessimistic vision of the human condition.