IN MEMORIAM: Agustin Blazquez, April 17th, 1944-October 27th, 2022.

by Laurence Jarvik

Agustin Blazquez (1944-2022)

It is with great sadness we report that Agustin Blazquez passed away October 27th, 2022 in Bethesda, Maryland at age 78, from a stroke. Agustin was my dear friend of thirty years, and also my artistic collaborator as producer-director of The Trump Effect: Deprogramming the American Mind (2017). 

I first met him at a hearing in the 1990s where we both testified to Congress about serious problems at PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. His testimony struck me as both honest and courageous, paying no heed to any careerist considerations. In addition, with his ponytail, beard, and wearing a colorful outfit, there was no way that anyone could see him as anything but a blacklisted artist. Years later, I attempted unsuccessfully to help get his Covering Cuba 7: Che: The Other Side of an Icon aired on PBS. Even though Agustin had met Che personally in Cuba, and even though PBS had broadcast numerous pro-Che Guevara programs, and even though at the time the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was headed by a supposedly anti-communist Republican, and staffed by purportedly anti-communist filmmakers Michael Pack and John Prizer, they would not help get his film critical of Che Guevara on-air. 

It reinforced everything Agustin had told me about the degree of protection that Cuban communism enjoyed even from so-called conservative media. But this did not stop Agustin, because he was unstoppable.

I watched in awe as Agustin made movie after movie, building testimony for future generations about the horrors of communism, at first released on DVD, later on YouTube. He was thinking of the future, not the present...

So I was delighted when he and his co-producer, Jaums Sutton, decided to make The Trump Effect after the 2016 election, in order to explain the significance of the election of Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States. Not surprisingly, PBS didn't show the film, nor did any film festival. The only review was published in Frontpage Magazine, for which we were very grateful. 

But none of this fazed Agustin in the least. Like Bach writing music for the Glory of God, or Solzhenitsyn keeping careful notes in the Gulag, he made his movies for Posterity.

Agustin Blazquez was a Renaissance Man--actor, painter, sculptor, graphic artist, portrait photographer, author, essayist, novelist, and a truly independent filmmaker whose oeuvre included music videos, documentaries, and art movies--and he left a legacy of personal integrity and courage in every medium in which he worked.

Born to Elisenda Martin and Francisco Blazquez in Cardenas, Cuba on April 17th, 1944, he grew up in the small towns of Coliseo and Limonar. Even in childhood, he said he knew that he was an artist:

"From a very early age I was drawing and painting everywhere, including on the walls. I developed the sense of a strong force pulling me to a life devoted to art...While I was studying in high school, I discovered that the style of my early childhood drawings bore a remarkable resemblance to the ancient Egyptian murals that appeared in my ancient history textbook. I took this as a sign of a mystic affinity between my inspirations and those of the ancient Egyptians...During the early 1960s I also painted abstract compositions and around 1963 I returned to my first love–Egyptian art–and completed a second collection of Egyptian paintings."

In addition to his art, Blazquez pursued a singing and acting career, graduating from the Municipal Academy of Dramatic Arts of Havana in 1962. He began his acting career before graduation, appearing in Cuban theatre, radio and television. While studying at the academy, he and a fellow alumnus purchased a Keystone 16mm camera and made two short films, shot in sequence because of lack of access to editing equipment. They were only able to view the films once, and unable to otherwise screen or distribute them. 

He auditioned for the Instituto Cuban de Arte y Industry Cinematographic (ICAIC), the official government film studio, in 1962. In 1963, he was cast in En Dias Como Estos (1964) , directed by Jorge Fraga, as  the supervisor of a group of volunteer teachers in the Sierra Maestra Mountains named "Responsable." He also played a bartender in Cronica Cubana (1963) and a bit part in Preludio 11 (1963).

Blazquez recalled how he had to hide his discomfort from pro-revolutionary relatives (some very active in the Communist Party): "I was put under contract with a theatrical group the government created to present plays in the countryside around La Habana. It was of course in a legitimate revolutionary company that I was sure my little cousin would have approved and even been PROUD of me. What he didn’t know was that at that time I detested THE REVOLUTION more than ever because I had more information and first hand experience with the actual “REVOLUTIONARY JUSTICE”. But I didn’t see my little cousin during that period. He was busy involved in defending the indefensible. Even my mother was afraid of him and asked me not to talk to him anymore!"

On July 18th 1965, Blazquez escaped Cuba, leaving behind his acting career and two reels of film to an unknown fate. He subsequently lived in Montreal, Paris and Madrid, prior to arriving in the United States in 1967.   

In Montreal he worked as a busboy, in Paris cleaning floors, in Madrid  as a dress designer, in addition to acting.  All the while he was also painting.

In Spain, he acted for Television Espanola (TVE) from 1966 to 1967 in numerous dramatic, musical and comedy productions.  In the USA, Blazquez appeared on America's Most Wanted (1989) as a drug dealer, and in voice-overs as King Juan Carlos of Spain and Barcelona guitarist Jordi Pujol in Maryland Public Television's (MPT) The Immigrants. He also narrated the Cuban Spanish version of Welcome to the US: A Guidebook for Refugees, produced for the US State Department.

His work as an artist continued, first with "Op-Art" in Paris and Madrid, and exhibiting there for the first time as a professional. Blazquez arrived in America in 1967 and had his first art show in 1968. He shifted to Egyptian themes in the 1970s, as he wrote:

"In 1974, after a hiatus of 11 years, I resumed painting in the Egyptian style and in 1976 my one-man-show 'Egyptian Sculptured Paintings' opened in Washington, DC. I received an official invitation from the Egyptian Embassy to visit Egypt as a guest of the Ministry of Higher Education in March of 1978. After my return from Egypt other one-man and group shows followed in subsequent years."

One of his shows was at the US State Department, reviewed in State Magazine by John Bentel under the title An Egyptian Montage:

The concert series offers a diverse selection of talent to Department employees. One of the more intriguing examples of this occurred on September 18 in the East Auditorium when filmaker Agustin Blazquez debuted “Memories of Egypt,” a chronicle of the artist’s odyssey from childhood to the present.

Mr. Blazquez was born and raised in Cuba and at an early age showed a gift for drawing and painting. As a child, he had recurring dreams influenced by Egyptian images, something he claims he had not yet seen. In high school, the artist said, he became aware of the remarkable resemblance between the Egyptian murals in his textbook and his own childhood drawings. Blazquez left Cuba in 1965, feeling his freedom imperiled by the oppressiveness of the Castro regime.

In 1974 the vivid dreams returned and became his art form: his murals evolved into three-dimensional shapes in the form of Egyptian mummies. In 1978 the government of Egypt invited him to be their guest for a month and interest in his artwork later resulted in over 80 private and group showings. His collection since 1967 totals 504 pieces.

“Memories of Egypt” is a montage of Blazquez’ artistic evolution. He has an uncanny eye for the balance between imagery and music, and the special effects were captivating. The sounds of harp and piano seemed to simulate the images shown on the screen. I left longing to see more of this artist’s work. 

The Egyptian tour was so remarkable that Blazquez wrote an autobiographical magical realist novel afterward, entitled The Killer Flies of Luxor, which remained unpublished for over forty years. He was revising the manuscript for publication at the time of his death.

Most significantly,  Blazquez was so appalled by the inaccurate way US media covered Cuba, that he felt compelled to set the record straight based upon his personal experience as a political refugee from Communism. 

This subject was to become the focus of his life's work. In 1968, he began writing articles on the subject, eventually totaling over 300--distributed by word-of-mouth, US Mail, fax, email, and eventually on the internet and published in El Tiempo Latino.

In addition, his op-eds about Cuba were published by the Houston Chronicle, Washing Inquirer, Washington Post, Washington Times, NewsMax, and FrontPage Magazine. A collection of his essays  was published in collaboration with Carlos Wotzkow  by Alexandria Library under the title Cubriendo y Descubriendo/Covering and Discovering (2001). He also did the English translation for Luise Grave de Peralta Morel's The Mafia of Havana: The Cuban Cosa Nostra (2002).

Despite having to earn his living in unrelated jobs, Blaquez continued to make films, at first with an 8 mm home movie camera, and later with video equipment he learned to use at a local cable television station. His documentaries presented a wide-ranging indictment of both Cuban Communism and the American media's collaboration with Fidel Castro over the years and have been screened at the Miami Latin Film Festival, Dallas American Film Renaissance Festival, Palm Beach International Latin Film Festival, and the Miami International Book Fair and online at https://cubanstudiesinstitute.us and   https://www.towertheatermiami.com.

They include Covering Cuba (1995), which premiered at the American Film Institute in Washington, DC's Kennedy Center in 1995. This was followed by Cuba, the Pearl of the Antilles; Covering Cuba 2: The Next Generation; Covering Cuba 3: Elian; Covering Cuba 4: The Rats Below; Pattern of Deception by Dan Rather; Covering Cuba 5: Act of Repudiation; Covering Cuba 6: Curacao;  and Covering Cuba 7: Che: The Other Side of an Icon.

Other productions include March of a Progressive, a music video performed by Steve Pichan; Be Careful! The Sharks Will Eat You! in which Jay Alvarez talked about his one-man show about escaping Cuba; Uno, a music video, and Mi Decision (2012), a music documentary about Luisa Maria Guell's decision to leave Cuba for an unknown future in America despite fame and success in Havana; as well as Connecting the Dots (2012); Ivan's Journey (2013); and The Trump Effect: Deprogramming the American Mind (2017). He also made Rumberas Cubanas, starring Maria Antonieta Pons.

In addition, he made music videos in different genres for classical and Latino artists.

In 2007, writing in Revista Hispano Cubana, critic Roberto Fadino called Blazquez, "one of the most representative filmmakers in exile, and his documentaries must be valued at the same height as the best of this genre."

Many of his films are currently available on DVD from Cuba Collectibles (https://www.cubacollectibles.com/cuba-product-search.html?Search=Agustin+blazquez), or for viewing on his YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/jaums) which includes his personal explanation of the Covering Cuba series.

His papers are in the archives of the University of Miami Cuban Heritage Collection (https://atom.library.miami.edu/chc0550). 

Jaums Sutton, his co-producer for decades, said of him: 

"Living beyond the edge of what he could do, his talent was just his starting point.  Never mind where he went."

Selected filmography: 

Films:

 

Hillside House (circa 1972) documentary 15” super 8mm. USA

Mission Super Impossible (1970) fiction 45” super 8mm. USA

The Violet Seller (1970) fiction 45” super 8mm. USA

Heidy’s Graduation Party (1962) fiction 15” 16mm.

Maria and Manolo (circa 1961) fiction 16mm. Cuba

 

Videos:

 

Gnossiene IV (5-24-1995) music video 5’19" USA

Cuba Criolla (6-21-95), music video 18'17" USA

COVERING CUBA (9-11-95) documentary, 112',English w/o subtitles, USA

Memories of Egypt (6-11-96) documental autobiographic 34’6”, English & Spanish versions, USA

Noticiero Marielito/Marielito News (10-14-97) comedy newscast 10'54” Spanish w. English subtitles, USA

Ruben and his music (9-30-98) documentary 24'28" English & Spanish versions, USA

Chopin Nocturne, (11-12-98) music video 5'54" Ruben Pelaez, piano, USA

Chopin Prelude 2824, (11-15-98) music video 2'49" Ruben Pelaez, piano, USA

Chopin Prelude 11, (11-15-98) music video 1'24" Ruben Pelaez, piano, USA

Chopin Prelude 2816, (11-15-98) music video 1'40" Ruben Pelaez, piano, USA

Cafe Gijon (12-14-98) music video 3'50", USA

CUBA: The Pearl of the Antilles (4-15-99) historic & musical documentary w. English subtitles, 50', USA

Ernesto en America (5-6-99) documentary 23'41" Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, Spanish, USA

Ernesto Tamayo Live (5-17-99) music video 3'23," Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Fandango, (7-28-99) music video 4’59” Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Bach Sonata BWV, (7-30-99) music video 5'26" Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Allegro-Manuel Ponce, (8-4-99) music video 6'21" Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Bagatelle-William Walton, (8-4-99) music video 4'41" Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Ernesto Tamayo at Rickover Hill (8-5-99) music video 19'54" Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Ernesto Tamayo Mystical Guitar (8-27-99) music video, 19’31” Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Ernesto Tamayo Classical Guitar (8-28-99) music video 14’31” Ernesto Tamayo, guitar, USA

Ruben Pelaez Live Performances (11-16-99) music video 17'21" Ruben Pelaez, piano, USA

RUBEN PELAEZ LIVE (1-1-00) music video, 34'56" Ruben Pelaez, piano, USA

Cristian & Carolina (3-20-00) children documentary 17’27”, English, USA

COVERING CUBA 2: The Next Generation (12-10-00) documentary 58’14” English, USA

COVERING CUBA 2 TRAILER (12-14-00) English,1’, USA

Al Son Del Mambo (4-16-01) trailer 5’18” Spanish, USA

COVERING CUBA 3: Elian (11-1-02) documentary 62'57" English, USA

COVERING CUBA 3 TRAILER (11-6-02) English, 2’, USA

Rafael Monteagudo Solo Percussion (9-5-03) music video 11'24" USA

Diez Dias En Primavera (5-31-04) documentary 63’ Spanish w/o subtitles, USA

COVERING CUBA 4: The Rats Below (8-24-04) documentary 105” English, USA

COVERING CUBA 4: The Rats Below (4-15-05) documentary 105” English & Spanish subtitles, USA

Dan Rather ’60 Minutes’ an inside view (4-15-05) documentary 8’, English, USA

Rafael Monteagudo/Clave In Modern Drumset Playing (10-23- 05) music instructional video 49” English, USA.

Rumberas Cubanas / Cuba Rumba Queens Vol. 1 Maria Antonieta Pons (3-20-06) documentary 89’, musical, Spanish w. English subtitles, USA

UNO (4-7-06) version 1, music video, 5’25” Luisa Maria Güell, singer, Spanish, USA

Rumberas Cubanas Trailer (5-19-06) 4’12” Spanish w. English subtitles, USA

Tangos y Milongas (6-15-06) music demo 7’35” Luisa Maria Güell, singer, Spanish, USA

COVERING CUBA 4 TRAILER (7-8-06) 5’2” English Spanish subtitles, USA

UNO (6-27-06) version 2, music video 5’25” Luisa Maria Güell, singer, Spanish, USA

COVERING CUBA 5: ACT OF REPUDIATION (12-7-06) documentary 58” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA

COVERING CUBA 5 TRAILER (12-10-06) 2” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA 

Cancion de Cuna (12-17-06) music video 3” Pedro Cañas, guitar, USA

COVERING CUBA SERIES EXPLANATION (2-28-07) short version 5’20” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA

COVERING CUBA SERIES EXPLANATION (3-8-07) longer version 7’8” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA

COVERING CUBA 6: CURACAO (1-5-08) documentary 63” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA

COVERING CUBA 6 TRAILER (1-10-08) 2” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA

Rafael Monteagudo/Clave In Modern Drumset Playing/New Version (7-7- 08) music instructional video 67” English, USA.

Caroline – The Little Mermaid (4-19-10) music video 3” USA

THE WHITNEYS (5-30-10) documentary 98” English, USA

THE WHITNEYS’ COLLECTION (5-30-10) documentary 28” English, USA

You Don’t Know Che (6-1-10) music video 5” Steve Pichan, singer, USA

COVERING CUBA 7: CHE The Other Side Of An Icon (6-7-10) documentary 114” English w. Spanish subtitles, USA

March of a Progressive/ What They Don’t Know (8-20-10) music video 5” Steve Pichan singer, USA