Manuel Azcuy was born in Pinar del Rio, Cuba where he developed his prowess and individual artistic technique and style. He continued to pursue his passion for art as a professor instructing adults and children at the Pedro Junco Cultural Center in Pinar del Rio for over a decade as his talent and artistic personality grew to mature. Manuel’s education in art includes studies and teaching in drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture and art history. Throughout his artistic career, his work has evolved through various phases of realism to his most current works in figurative expressionism. “With my paintings it is my intention to reflect in a subjective way the feelings and emotions of man. The artistic atmosphere and pictorial treatment are interrelated with the mystical and obscure. I am captivated by the figuration of the grotesque expressive as a source for my poetics. I try to capture the vulnerability and weakness of the human body aimed at a social criticism.” Manuel Azcuy has exhibited his art throughout Cuba, Miami and the United States, showcasing his unique paintings in private galleries, studios, cultural centers and other art venues. He has received awards and prizes in the United States and Cuba for his artwork.