Acrylic paint on wooden cigar boxes, wood floating frame.
36" x 36" x 8.5"
*shipping invoiced separately
On February 6, 1962, President John F. Kennedy asked his press secretary, Pierre Salinger, to obtain 1,200 Cuban cigars—specifically his preferred Petit Upmanns. Once the cigars were delivered to the Oval Office and counted, Kennedy gave the green light. The following morning, February 7, 1962, he signed Proclamation 3447, officially placing a full trade embargo on Cuba. From that moment on, Cuban cigars became illegal to import into the United States.
This portrait is constructed from enough cigar boxes to hold those same 1,200 cigars—a material echo of that quietly legendary transaction. The work reflects on power, timing, appetite, and the small, human indulgences that sit just beneath historic decisions.
