Reynier Llanes’ curiosity cannot be contained. He traces its origins to his childhood in Cuba.

“My grandfather used to get all the grandkids at the table on Sundays, and after the meal, he would read us from Aesop’s Fables,” Llanes said. “Then we had to come up with the message of the story.”

“That experience taught him the value of using metaphors and allegories to paint visual stories.

“I felt it was a powerful tool for me to create ideas,” Llanes observed. “It's a magic realism that my work can deliver to the audience.”

His flight from Cuba on a boat with 21 other emigrants also influences much of Llanes’ work.

“My art is about freedom,” Llanes noted. “I'm very intrigued about our past and our future and how I am responsible to my own life.”

Llanes also credits the pandemic with s

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