Miami artist to unveil Latino Health painting at Center’s Conference in Chicago

On Thursday, June 5th, 2003 Miami artist Xavier Cortada will unveil “Salud”, a painting he created for the to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the conference host, the Midwest Latino Health Research, Training, and Policy Center.

The painting will be unveiled during Cortada’s keynote luncheon address (“Art as an Agent of Social Change”) for the Regional Hispanic/Latino Health and Human Services Conference: “Celebrating our Past and Building our Future: Best Practices in Addressing Hispanic/Latino Issues” at the Allegro Hotel in downtown Chicago.

The Center commissioned Cortada to create the Salud painting and printed poster replicas the colorful piece of to be distributed to all the attendees. (After the unveiling Cortada will sign posters).

According to Cortada, the goal of the painting is to “reinforce a culture of healthier living.” In painting the piece, Cortada designed a painting that “delivered the very message health workers deliver when they work in the trenches to ensure that Latinos live longer happier and healthier lives in this country.” Salud depicts a health worker in a Latino neighborhood as she is engaged in community based prevention, educational and outreach activities. The fruit of this effort is demonstrated in behavior modification at the nutritional, athletic and health awareness level. The artist added, “by reinforcing this message we are honoring their labor and celebrating their contributions.”

Salud is among the many health-based pieces Cortada has created. Other pieces have addressed HIV/AIDS, Women’s Health, Substance Abuse, Underage Drinking, Disabilities, Cancer, Prevention, Alzheimer’s, Sexual Abuse and Violence.

Xavier Cortada has exhibited his works in museums, galleries, and cultural venues around the world and has pioneered the use of the Internet in collaborative art-making. The Miami-based Cuban-American artist, attorney, and activist has worked collaboratively with diverse groups across the United States, Latin America, Europe and Africa to create pro-social community murals and participant-driven art projects. Cortada has created murals for:

The White House
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Global Health Council
International AIDS Conferences (Geneva, Durban)
Miami-Dade County Juvenile Courthouse
Miami-Dade Art in Public Places
Miami Art Museum
HBO
Hershey’s
Nike

More information about the artist is available on his website at www.cortada.com.