Raul Milian (1914-1986)
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Cuba’s classic tortured artist is Raul Milian. Self-taught and original, Milian studied under Rene Portocarrero and used innovative methods to create a style all his own.
Milian was born in Havana and even though he was very near to Cuba’s art school Mecca, the San Alejandro Academy, he did not attend there. Instead, he taught himself his own unique style. Milian got a very late start in his artistic career, and didn’t actually begin to paint until 1952, when he was almost 40. He traveled Europe extensively, and perhaps picked up some of the ideas of the Cubists, the Spanish Futurists or the Nordic design school of Bauhaus along the way.
While Milian has been called an abstract artist, perhaps the best way to describe his work would be Graphic and definitely Modernist. Milian never used oil paint in his art, and always worked in ink or mixed media to create his gritty images. The message that Milian tried to convey in these pieces of art was one of a sensible man caught in the midst of a world of violence. His work clearly shows repetitions, be it through shapes or lines, and certainly convey a sort of madness.
One way to tell if you own a piece of art by Milian is to note not only the medium but the surface on which the piece has been created. Milian would often use cardboard in lieu of canvas, probably due to the fact that he was using inks instead of oils. Many of his works are untitled as well, or named very simply, if at all. It was also typical of Milian to not include his signature on the front of his pieces. Interestingly, much of Milian’s pieces are originals, and not prints or lithographs. This makes his original works even more rare and interesting to find. For example, one of his 11 inch x 15 inch ink-on-paper originals from 1959 is worth a whopping $7,000 U. S. dollars.
Due to Milian’s extensive travel and unusual style, the possibilities for owning his work are immense. Abstract art of this nature can often be hard to authenticate, so you may very well own an original Milian and not even know it! Be careful of throwing out small ink drawings for this very reason…one may be from this artist! Pressed between books or stuffed in a suitcase from a long-ago trip to Cuba, you never know when a real piece of art will find you.
In his lifetime, Milian was able to show his work at a number of venues, and even at universities in Vermont and Toronto. Today, his work is housed worldwide, but especially in the America’s. Milian’s work hangs at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, as well as in galleries in Houston, Ottowa, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Milian committed suicide by jumping off of a roof in 1986.
