Cuban-style art is a contrasting ethnic merging of African, European and North American visual design reflecting the multi-ethnic population make-up of the island. Artists from Cuba developed the European modernist movement and the 1920-1940 era saw an increase in Cuban vanguardism trends; these movements were characterized by an assortment of modern esthetic styles. Some of the more celebrated 20th century Cuban artists were likely to come from the early 1900s.

Perhaps the most legendary art (of sorts) to come out of Cuba was THAT picture of a certain Che Guevara (shot by Mr Alberto Korda) which went onto become maybe one of the most identifiable photos of the 20th century.

The indigenous Cuban art movement accumulated some pace following the opening of San Alejandro academy in 1818, which was built to live up to the European penchant of the middle class population of Cuba. In the late 1800s, landscapes were very popular within the Cuban art movement and classicism dominated as the main art style.

Even So, the Vanguardia Cuban modern artist of the 1920s had disapproved the academic formulas of the national art academy of Cuba. During their formative years, many Cuban artists had resided in France, where they learned and assimilated the tenets of surrealism, cubism, and modernist primitivism. Once back in Cuba, they became committed to new artistic methods and were keen to blend this new aesthetic leaning with a Cuban influence. The pioneering artists achieved international acknowledgement only as recently as 2003 with the Modern Cuban Painting show at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Such styles have now been made very fashionable through canvas artwork adorned on walls around the world.