Attributed to Victor Manuel, it does not have a COA. Medium: gouache paper, 32 x 27 inches. Provenance: private owner.
Biography: 1897 - 1969. Born in Havana, Victor Manuel showed a precocious attitude for drawing. At age 12, he started studying arts at San Alejandro Art School, the most recognized art school in Cuba. When he was 14, he started to act as unofficial professor of elementary drawing classes.He studied with Leopoldo Romañach, another famous Cuban painter, and by age 19 his talent started to become evident. Nevertheless, he performed his first personal exhibition as late as 1924 (when he was 26 years old). In 1925, he traveled abroad, visiting France. It was in Montparnasse that a group of French artists advised him to sign his paintings only as Víctor Manuel (until that moment, he used his entire name and surname).He returned home in 1927, and participated in an exhibition at the Painters and Sculptors Association of Havana, that is considered one of the starting points of Cuban modern painting era. In this time, he dedicated himself, for almost two years, to train other Cuban painters free of charge.Afterwards, he returned to Europe, visiting Spain and Belgium, returning to Cuba again in 1929. It was in this year that he created his most famous painting: La Gitana Tropical ("The Tropical Gipsy"), popularly known as La Gioconda Americana, (the American Mona Lisa), which is in the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Havana. It is considered by critics to be one of the defining pieces of Cuban Avant-garde.He obtained a first prize in 1935, in an art exhibition at Havana's Lyceum, and continued exhibiting his works in Cuba and abroad.He died on 1969, in Havana.

All authorship of items in this catalog are described according to the following terms:

Signed [Artist Name] : In cases in which the signature is legible in the lot, this work is described as-is with no attributions given.

By [Artist Name] : The work is by the artist.

Attributed to [Artist Name] : The work may be ascribed to the artist on the basis of style, but there may be some question as to actual authorship.

In the manner of [Artist Name] : The work was executed by an unknown hand, but was designed deliberately to emulate the style of the artist.

After [Artist Name] : The work was executed by an unknown hand, but is a deliberate copy of a known work by the artist.

Circle of [Artist Name] : A work of the period of the artist showing his influence, closely associated with the artist but not necessarily his pupil.

Follower of [Artist Name]: A work by a pupil or a follower of the artist (not necessarily a pupil).

American, 19th century: This work was executed by an unknown hand, and can only be identified by origin (i.e., region, period).

Mint