Ernest - XL - Éter

Ernest M. is a young Cuban artist educated in the city of Manzanillo, Granma, in eastern Cuba. He currently lives and works in Havana, where he continues to develop a steady pictorial production and an artistic trajectory centered, to a large extent, on the investigation of the human figure and its relationship with the aquatic environment.

In recent years, the artist has developed a series dedicated to immersion, water, and the human figure, turning these elements into one of the most recognizable features of his pictorial language. Women suspended beneath the surface, faces pierced by reflections, fish, movements of the hair, optical distortions, bubbles and changes of light appear repeatedly in his compositions, not as mere decorative resources, but as part of an ever more defined visual universe.

One of the most interesting aspects of his painting is precisely the treatment of water as a pictorial and psychological element. Ernest manages to represent the water surface, reflections and distortions produced by light through brushstrokes that oscillate between figuration, expressive realism and moments close to hyperrealism. However, his intention does not seem limited to faithfully reproducing a scene: he uses those distortions to transform the face and the human body, creating images that sit between the real, the dreamlike, and the introspective.

His palette is clearly dominated by deep blues, turquoises, greens and marine tones, which frequently contrast with reds, ochres, oranges and warm tones applied to the skin, the fish, the flowers or the reflections. This chromatic opposition gives a strong visual presence to the works and makes the figure emerge from the aquatic background even when it seems completely integrated into it.

It is also characteristic the way the artist works the composition. In many of his paintings, the waterline runs directly across the face or body of the character, dividing the image into two realities. In others, the viewer observes the scene fully submerged. That choice generates a sense of silence, suspension and isolation that recurs in his work. Water thus becomes a boundary, refuge and space of transformation.

Within the series there are compositions of a more intimate and contemplative character, while others present a freer, gestural and expressive painting. This variety allows us to observe the evolution of an artist who continually experiments within a recognizable theme without being limited to a single formula.

Another notable aspect is the materiality of the works. The photographs allow us to appreciate the overall structure of the compositions and their chromatic richness, but the painting acquires a considerably greater dimension when viewed physically, where the variations in brushwork, color superpositions, texture and the small changes in light with which the sense of depth is built can be perceived more clearly.

The repetition of certain elements—the female figure, the fish, the partially submerged face, the floating hair, the surface reflections and the intense blue of the water—is helping to shape a recognizable artistic identity. In a young creator, this coherence is especially meaningful, as it demonstrates the will to build a sustained body of work rather than isolated pieces.

Ernest currently maintains an active artistic production and continues developing his career through exhibitions and projects both in Cuba and in Spain and other international contexts. His works have gradually found buyers and collectors outside Cuba and are currently part of private collections and galleries in several European and Latin American countries.

His paintings are also regularly offered at Catawiki auctions, where his work has been well received by the public and collectors.

Acquiring a work by Ernest means approaching the work of a young Cuban artist who is still in the full process of growth, but who already possesses elements of particular value within an emerging trajectory: a clearly identifiable theme, continuity in his pictorial investigation, growing mastery of color and the representation of water and, above all, the search for a personal visual identity.

His aquatic series currently represents one of the most personal facets of his production and stands as a good example of how a seemingly everyday motif can be transformed, through painting, into a reflection on the body, identity, silence, beauty and perception.

Water does not merely act as a backdrop in Ernest’s work: it functions as a second language that fragments, transforms and reconstructs the human figure.

Artwork by the artist Ernest created in oil on high-quality professional canvas.
Dimensions 100 x 70 cm of painting.
Original edition.
Shipping will be carried out through United Parcel Service (UPS) for Spain and Europe, and through FedEx for the rest of the world.
The work will be rolled and protected by several layers of packaging, bubble wrap, and placed in a sturdy tube.
Once the work is paid for, three days are required for the packaging process and delivery to the shipping company.
The piece will reach you within ten days, depending on the destination country.
This lot contains visualizations made with AI. Check the original photographs to verify the actual condition of the work.

This fascinating original work, masterfully executed in oil on canvas, immerses the viewer in a universe of serene introspection and liquid beauty where time seems to stand completely still. The composition exquisitely renders the submerged figure of a woman in perfect harmony with her aquatic surroundings, whose shapes are subtly blurred by the sway of currents and the rays of light penetrating from the surface to dance across her skin. The artist demonstrates an extraordinary command of the color palette, using deep and vibrant blues that contrast sublimely with the golden and warm hues of the upper reflection, while small details such as bubbles of air and the presence of fish suspended in the semi-darkness add a poetic and evocative dynamism to the scene. Each brushstroke reveals a profound aesthetic and technical sensitivity, turning this piece into an exceptional and captivating acquisition destined to enrich any contemporary art collection with its atmosphere of peace and mystery.