Carlos Gamez de Francisco

Carlos Gamez de Francisco was born in post-revolutionary Cuba in 1987, to a Cuban- Spanish mother and a Cuban-American father. He grew up in Cuba and was educated in an academic style heavily influenced by the Russian Academy. At age five, he determined, with absolute certainty, that he would be an artist. By the time he was fifteen, Gamez de Francisco was diligently painting 8 hours a day, every day. His classical training was based on portraits and history, paintings that Royalty and the very wealthy upper class would commission. Garments were exquisite, surroundings emanating wealth. But Carlos felt that ‘Everybody has the right to be in the portrait’ and he embarked on a series where everyday people were featured with ‘found’ objects in their home, like lace doilies, curtains, plastic bags and kitchen towels, draped and adorned in such a way they appeared ‘royal’.