Stirring, sensuous, quizzical, and bursting with talent, Cuba’s artists hail from an island of resourcefulness, using found objects, generations of recycled materials and the country’s can-do approach. Some are formally trained, many self-taught, and the social commentary of their work is unmatched. Cienfuegos, Cuba-based painter Julio Barbón Davis has been sketching since he was a small boy, and today he’s among the nation’s leading folk artists. “My work represents love for nature, and the necessity of protecting fauna and flora,” says the mechanical engineer turned painter. Barbón’s strength is his come-at-you depiction of people often layered in well-defined sections of paint that almost look cubist. His vivid yellows, deep ceruleans, sea blues and rich browns light up his subjects -- a toddler with baby fat, a mature woman with kinked salt and pepper hair, a young boy with butterscotch skin – all with captivating green eyes. Backdrops give respect to Mother Earth with sea, sky, and forest references. In the gallery, we fit four of these bright works in a generational display on board. Stark and bold yet nuanced, the work of Julio Barbón Davis aptly reflects Cuba’s contradictions and complexities.