Photo by Narcy Studios, Cuba, courtesy of Omer Pardillo-Cid.Ĭelia Cruz was born Ursula Hilaria Celia Caridad Cruz Alfonso on October 21, 1925, in the diverse working-class neighborhood of Santos Suárez in Havana, Cuba. All Cubans know Celia Cruz’ version of this deeply melancholic song by Argentine Luis Aguilé-a song that says I can never die here for I left my heart buried in Cuba… it is waiting for me to return there.Ĭelia Cruz in Cuba, ca. If “Guántanamera” is the patriotic anthem, then the 1967 “Cuando salí de Cuba,' is the anthem of exiled Cubans. (I have to admit, that when I was 5, I thought this was a song about a man named Juan from an island with palm trees and not about a woman from Guántanamo.) in 1966 by The Sandpipers, a folk rock group. “Guántanamera” is probably the best known song, sometimes referred to as the Cuban anthem. It was her image on many of the record album covers and her amazing voice that came from the record player. So, I learned about Cuba from Celia Cruz. He was reluctant to talk about Cuba, a place he knew he’d never return to. Somehow, he had made his way in the later 1950s from a tropical island to the middle of Texas, where no one but us it seemed ate black beans and lechon asado, or drank thick Cuban espresso coffee. It was there that my Cuban father played his LPs. In the living room, the Spanish had a different accent and the music, a completely different sound. In the kitchen, it was KCOR: La Voz Mexicana en San Antonio. This project is inspired by the exhibition Pushing Boundaries: Portraits by Robert Weingarten, on view July 2-October 14 at the Smithsonian’s International Gallery, Ripley Center on the National Mall. The finished portrait will be displayed at the Smithsonian this fall. Once a winner is announced, the public will have further opportunity to contribute to Weingarten’s unique process of visual biography. Between May 11-28, visitors can vote on which of these historic figures they would most like to see depicted in the portrait. During the week of May 7-11, the museum will present five blogs about significant individuals in American history.

The National Museum of American History and photographer Robert Weingarten are working in collaboration to build a historic portrait with help from the public.

Sonora matancera breve historia