Many supporters of this year’s Havana Biennale withdrew their support after Fidel Castro jail journalists and allowed some artists to be censored. “But with the Castro government struggling to maintain its place on the world stage, and its population suffering under US sanctions dating back to 1961, the hosting of an art biennial is an important opportunity for Cuba and its artists to engage in six weeks of cultural discourse and exchange, as well as for a much needed injection of foreign spending on the island. And with Cuban artists dominating the display, the exhibition functions as an advertisement for native talent. ‘All third world biennials are a strategy to promote the local art. Cuba is no exception’.”