Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana.
The municipality extends over , and contains t ...
- 26 September 1896,
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
) was a Cuban painter and advocate for independence.
Biography
Collazo was born into an established colonial family. His artistic talent was noticed at an early age by one of his instructors at school in Santiago. While there, he was also motivated to become an independence fighter following the death by firing squad of one of his cousins at age 17. At the beginning of the
Ten Years' War
The Ten Years' War (; 1868–1878), also known as the Great War () and the War of '68, was part of Cuba's fight for independence from Spain. The uprising was led by Cuban-born planters and other wealthy natives. On 10 October 1868, sugar mil ...
, his parents, aware of his activities and concerned for his safety, hastily put him on board a ship headed for the United States.Brief biography @ Cernuda Arte.
He arrived in New York with no resources, speaking no English. Eventually, he found a job touching up and coloring photographs at a small shop in the
Bowery
The Bowery () is a street and neighbourhood, neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City, New York. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row (Manhattan), Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th ...
. After a short time there, he found work in the studios of
Napoleon Sarony
Napoléon Sarony (March 9, 1821 – November 9, 1896) was an American lithography, lithographer and photography, photographer. He was a highly popular portrait photographer, best known for his portraits of the stars of late-19th-century American ...
,Brief biography @ Eumed. and was able to save enough money to open his own art studio, enjoying great success as a portrait painter. He also continued to raise money for revolutionary causes, and helped
José Martí
José Julián Martí Pérez (; 28 January 1853 – 19 May 1895) was a Cuban nationalism, nationalist, poet, philosopher, essayist, journalist, translator, professor, and publisher, who is considered a Cuban national hero because of his role in ...
get his first writing job at ''The Hour'', a magazine where Collazo worked as an illustrator.
In 1883 he returned to Cuba, opening a studio in
Havana
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. hampered by the increasingly oppressive political atmosphere there, he decided to go to Paris, where he opened a large studio which became a meeting point for the Cuban exile community and, occasionally, a place for planning revolutionary activities. In 1890, two of his works were selected for an exhibition at the
Salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...
.
In his final years, he devoted himself to sculpture because an addiction to narcotics had affected his eyesight and he was unable to focus clearly enough to paint. He died in Paris and, in 1899, after the
War of Independence
Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...
, his family brought his remains back to Cuba.
His works were not exhibited in Cuba until 1933, when the architect Evelio Govantes (1886–1981) organized a showing at the Lyceum with paintings borrowed from Collazo's friends and family. In 1976, his painting "The Patio" was used on one of a series of stamps honoring Cuban painters.
His brother, Enrique (1848–1921), was a high-ranking commander in the Liberation Army. @ En Caribe.