CubaPLUS Magazine

The very title of the exhibition, "Playing is Breathing," could serve as its own catalog. But then there's the delightful dance with brushes and the unmistakable stamp of Cuban culture, ever-present in Diana Balboa's work today.

"I am not depicting a playful addiction, but rather striving to continue believing in the delightful madness of play. 'Sane love is no love at all,' José Martí intentionally left for us to ponder," the artist reflected at the opening of the exhibition in Madrid.

"Playing is Breathing," featuring guest artist Betzi Arias López, confirms the energy of the author, who, at 80 years old, has just completed an intense tour of Spain, where she also presented emblematic documentaries of Cuba.

"I invite you to play by learning not to accept comfort as a parameter for happiness. I want to play at dancing because I feel we are all great dancers of life," she added at the launch of the exhibition at the Fernando Lázaro Carreter Center in Carabanchel, Madrid.

"I am provoked to play at writing the best poem or attempting that game we read about one day. To play at dreaming that we are adults, serious enough to know that the secret lies in continuing to play... seriously?" she completed.

Balboa was accompanied by Mayda Bustamante, a prestigious essayist, dance critic, and founder of Ediciones Cumbres, along with poet Silvia Cuevas, and Juanjo Amaya, leader of the musical group Los Incrédulos, who also enjoyed the work of Betzi Arias.

Previously, she was a key figure in the screening of the documentary "Maestra" in Cornellà and Barcelona, Spain, where she shared personal experiences of a historical moment in Cuba.

Cornellà de Llobregat and Barcelona hosted two very special screenings of the feature film "Maestra" (2012), directed by Catherine Murphy, an approach to the Cuban Literacy Campaign of 1961, an event of great importance in the 20th century.

The events were organized by the Catalan Coordinator of Solidarity with Cuba and Defensem Cuba, and included the collaboration of the Casal de Amistat amb Cuba of Barcelona.

In addition, she participated in the exhibition in Almería, Andalusia, of the documentary "Sara y Diana, La Victoria," by Claudia Rojas.

(Taken from Prensa Latina)