"Breaking Barriers: Selections from the Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale"

Do not let the monsters scare you off.

If the first painting you see upon entering "Breaking Barriers," the Snite Museum's newest exhibit of Cuban art, isn't enough to frighten you away, the length of its title may do the trick: "Monsters That Will Prevent People Like Sidney Tillim From Becoming Famous Artists." In this brightly colored painting by Pedro Pérez, two giant creatures bare their teeth and claws like ferocious monsters from a child's nightmare. Although it may seem flashy or chaotic, this painting, like many other pieces in "Breaking Barriers," is a serious commentary on the oppression faced by Cuban artists under Fidel Castro's Communist reign.

The artwork in the exhibit's next gallery is made up of dark, earthy tones, reflecting a more sorrowful side of the modern Cuban experience. Weary of years of oppression, thousands of Cubans have tried to flee from their homeland, many unsuccessfully. Luis Cruz Azaceta depicts the sad death of many of these balseros (boat people) in a painting entitled "Dead Rafter II." Even for those balseros who succeeded, the difficulties are many.

The uncertainty of life in a new land and the longing for the familiarity of loved ones is the subject of Glexis Novoa's work "Te fuiste (You Left)," which is a unique collage and drawing that the artist has extended onto the walls of the Snite. In the center of the gallery stands another unusual piece — Alejandro Aguilera's "History and Its Representation" — made up of two wooden figures with halos, representing two dead revolutionaries now viewed as Cuban heroes.

This intertwining of religion and politics is one of the themes of the third gallery, as shown in Emilio Falero's painting, "Redemptor Hominis." In this statement on capital punishment, a portrait of the dying Christ is surrounded by four stark images of a lone electric chair and a passage from the Book of Wisdom condemning man's use of death as punishment. Equally unsettling images are found in the gallery's many photographs, such as Andrés Serrano's "The Morgue" — a shot of the body of a murder victim which serves as a gristly reminder of violence's aftermath. On a sadder note, Tomás López's "Glenda" shows a beautiful, wide-eyed child gazing at the camera, utterly unaware of her fate as an AIDS victim.

After exposure to so many of the harsh realities of Cuban life, stepping into the final gallery of the exhibit feels as refreshing as the clear blue swirls and seas of Carlos Cárdenas's large "Untitled." Here, the human spirit triumphs in a land of rich beauty. Tomás Sánchez's "Orilla (Riverbank)" leads to a peaceful world of untouched rainforests, cool and lush, spreading out to the horizon. In an untitled painting by Arturo Rodríguez, a young girl's jump-rope game allows her, for an instant, to leap off the earth to which she is bound, celebrating the fiery exuberance of hope. The lasting impressions from this gallery are as uplifting as the powerful bursts of color in Paul Sierra's abstract, "Epiphany."

During these days of cold dreariness, visiting the rich, warm colors of "Breaking Barriers" is a welcome escape from the stark whiteness outside. Upon entering, the soft sounds of Cuban music draw in and lead one throughout the galleries. The music rolls from frenzied dances to quiet, mellow reflections, much like the shifts in tone and theme throughout the exhibit. Although the eye may first be caught by the vivid colors of many works, each piece deserves a moment of contemplation in this lesson on life in modern Cuba — a life often overwhelmed by the giant monsters of sorrow and oppression, yet a life full of irrepressible beauty, celebrated here by artists strongly tied to their homeland.

"Facing Death: Portraits from Cambodia's Killing Fields"

An afternoon spent in the Snite Museum during these winter months will find one exposed to drastic extremes. Directly across from "Breaking Barriers," a celebration of the beauty and strength of the Cuban people, lies another new exhibit, "Facing Death: Portraits from Cambodia's Killing Fields." This exhibit consists of 100 gelatin silver prints, photographs of prisoners of S-21, a secret Cambodian prison during the reign of Pol Pot.

From 1975 to 1979, Pol Pot led the Khmer Rouge in a violent revolution that took the lives of millions of Cambodians. Two hundred thousand were executed as enemies of the state in secret prisons like S-21. These "offenders," who were thought to have betrayed the Khmer Rouge movement, were brought to S-21, tortured until they confessed to whatever charges were brought against them, and finally executed. The photographs taken of these prisoners and their families upon their arrival make up this powerful exhibit.

From the long wall of black and white photographs, 100 faces stare silently back. Tagged and numbered like animals, the subjects show a range of emotions: confusion, fear, shock, anger. There are peaceful children with the quiet gaze of innocence, old men weary from years of pain and mothers clutching their babies in protection. When viewed from a distance, the faces seem to blur together into a single overwhelming image. But up close, the numbered subjects become human and their faces familiar. Their haunting eyes seem to follow one's movements — some terrified, some bewildered, the children's still calm and trusting. Sitting alone in the spacious gallery, it is suddenly apparent that each one of these people was captured, tortured and killed. There is no lofty, artistic interpretation to be done here. This is raw reality, a deed of humanity that must be dealt with, no matter how disturbing.

As its title states so obviously, "Facing Death" is not an exhibit to visit for amusement or entertainment. It is not an exhibit to be wandered through, but one that demands a few silent moments of thought. Nevertheless, it is something important to see: a powerful reminder of how fortunate we are merely to be alive.

• Cuba and Cambodia on display at Snite
  
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