Wynwood Lab Artist Manuel Garcia

NEGATIVE

POSITIVELY

Born in Matanzas, Cuba in 1988, Manuel Garcia is the son of architect parents and was interested in art from an early age. His vision for the Positively Negative collection began with a tonal suppressed self-portrait, which reflected his belief that his opportunities for a career in art in Cuba were reaching a dead end. By age 22, he had already won the Roberto Diago -Evento Provicional de Artes Visuales award, the country’s most honored accolade for artists, yet he longed for more. He was determined to leave Cuba for the United States to pursue his dreams. Shortly after arriving, he enrolled in college but found himself homeless. Becoming aware that everyone he saw had a smartphone, he began experimenting with inverting the colors in his paintings using that technology, a technique that revealed a treasure trove of hidden opportunity for artistic expression. His works quickly evolved to take advantage of this approach, infusing his paintings with powerful dual meaning traditional and transitional. García believes one should never change for change’s sake, but should always evolve until achieving the best version of oneself. “Enjoy life and always look for the positive, even in the negative situations.”

To view the art with inverted colors on your smartphone go to Settings > General > Accessibility > Invert Colors, then use the camera function on your phone to view the art.

Manuel Garcia

The Second Space I Acrylic on Canvas, 72” x 72” $15,000