CubaPLUS Magazine

If I have ever had the chance to meet and interact with pleasant people with whom, from the very first moment, there is great empathy, I can say that Boris Pérez is one of them. He is an outstanding visual creator who, with his hands, needles, fabrics, and threads, manages to produce true works of art.

At first, Boris began weaving macramé because, as he explained, his family has always worked with their hands and since childhood he felt the urge to work with textiles. “One day,” he recounted, “I happened to come across some macramé knots and learned how to weave macramé. But within macramé I realized that tapestries could be made, and I discovered a technique called Cavandoli, an old method used to create compact pieces knot by knot.”

“Tapestries are made knot by knot and, depending on their size, I can spend six months weaving a single piece,” he explained.

A single piece, he continued, can contain close to 300,000 knots. The problem is that when I immerse myself in that world, everything else disappears for me.

My goal was always to continue working with textiles. Later I moved into costume design, but the world of fashion itself does not attract me very much, and during fashion shows I realize that. I see clothing as something that must say something. When you see a person walking down the street, you can tell what that person is expressing through what they wear, he pointed out.

Regarding his working styles, Boris believes his work lies in his creative process, where he may work with collage, patchwork, or other forms of textile techniques.

Making collage is a mental exercise because you have to look at many things at the same time. You must compose images, deliver a message, and ensure that it reaches the viewer, he said. “I also call my textile tapestries textile collages because I use different textile scraps to compose an image. On these pieces I may work for up to two weeks, often for many hours each day.”

Among the creations that most fascinate Boris are tapestries. “I love them because I see possibilities in every piece that emerges. In addition, those pieces can have up to three layers of fabric. I baste them onto a support, then sew them with a machine and afterward I tear them. This is inspired by a costume technique used in the thirteenth century called the slashing technique, where the textile underneath has to come through,” he explained.

Despite never having been accepted to study pedagogy, this self taught creator teaches an elective course at the Higher Institute of Design called Textile Garment Construction, where he works together with Professor Arianet Valdivia.

“The most interesting thing,” he said, “is that I have very good communication with my students. And my students learn. In fact, people have stopped me on the street and told me: ‘I am making a living from what you taught me.’” He said this with pride and added, “For me, that is the greatest feeling someone can have.”

Regarding his current work at Casa de la Obra Pía, he explained that together with Professor Arianne Valdivia and architect René Gutiérrez they are carrying out the project “Creative Textile Laboratory: New Stitches for Rehabilitation,” with the aim of rescuing the textile values held by the institution and sharing them with the community.

With some of his works now part of collections in Argentina and Canada, Boris considers his work the ultimate expression of his creativity. “I am always creating. And I am never satisfied with what I do. I try to seek perfection. I am a Scorpio, and Scorpios seek perfection.”

“I am completely immersed in that search, searching and searching. And always studying. Because whoever does not study gets lost.” For that reason he advises those creators who are just beginning in this field that they must study. “And look, look, look a lot.

You have to look at books of art. And always look back. I always tell my students that we must study the great masters,” he concluded.