Cuban artist Eduardo Roca Salazar (Choco) was presented with the Pablo de la Torriente Brau Prize in Visual Arts, granted by the Havana-based Pablo de la Torriente Brau Culture Center.

In statements to Cuban Television, Choco thanked the jury of the prestigious prize.

The occasion served also for the renowned artist to exhibit six new pieces that he has created over the past nearly two years of physical isolation due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Choco said the new pieces reflect his inner world, feelings and state of mind amidst such difficult circumstances. He added that the new pieces are marked by his strong optimism and faith in humanity and everything that human being can accomplish despite difficulties.

A graduate from the Cuban National School of Art and the School of Arts and Letters of the University of Havana, Choco worked as a virtual arts professor in Cuba and taught courses on engraving in Spain and the United States.

He is a member of the National Association of Cuban Writers and Artists (UNEAC) and of the UNESCO International Association of Art.

An award-winning artist, he received the Engraving Award at the National Young Visual Arts Salon (1977), the Honorary Medal at the Graphic Arts Exhibition in Bulgaria (1981), the First Prize for Small Format Engraving in Galicia, Spain (1984), the First Prize in Drawing at UNEAC’s National Visual Arts Exhibition (1986), and the Grand Prix at the 4th International Engraving Triennial Exhibition in Kochi, Japan (1999).

His works can be found on private and public collections alike in Cuba and around the world.