Courtesy of Tezontle

Lucas Cantu and Carlos Matos, the duo behind the Mexico City-based art and architecture studio Tezontle, were the first foreign invitees to arrive in Havana for this year’s Biennial. They were also the last to leave. In fact, their large-scale sculpture, titled Tenaza, wasn’t yet erected on 12 May when the arts event officially came to an end.

位于墨西哥城的艺术和建筑工作室TezonTle背后的卢卡斯·坎普和卡洛斯·马托斯(CarlosMatos)是今年两年来哈瓦那抵达哈瓦那的第一批外国被邀请者。他们也是最后离开的人。事实上，当艺术活动正式结束时，他们的大规模雕塑（标题为Tenaza）并没有在12月12日建成。

Cantu and Matos had originally designed Tenaza as a site-specific work that would sit in between the ocean and the Malécon, a public promenade along the waterfront. ‘We imagined it as an extension of Havana,’ reflects Matos, ‘an extra pocket of space in a city that, for a long time, hasn’t seen a lot of development.’ When the final permit necessary proved impossible to acquire, the artists were forced to readjust. They ultimately settled on a nearby park in the Centro Habana neighbourhood.

坎图和马托斯最初设计了特纳扎作为一个特定地点的作品，将位于海洋和马累康，一个沿着海滨的公共长廊。“我们把它想象成哈瓦那的延伸，”马托斯说，“在一个很长一段时间没有看到太多发展的城市里，这是一个额外的空间。”当必要的最终许可被证明是不可能获得的时候，艺术家们被迫重新调整。他们最终在Centro Habana社区附近的一个公园定居下来。

Adaptability, they will tell you, is fundamental for executing a project of this scale in Cuba. Limited access to supplies, for example, led Cantu and Matos to source the unlikely. ‘We used probably ten cubic metres of residue material, cast inside the base, from crumbled houses,’ Matos says. ‘It’s a nice poetic gesture, but it was also a necessary one.’ In addition, they employed locally-sourced bamboo to create a formwork for the sculpture’s foundation.

他们会告诉你，在古巴执行这个规模的项目是根本的。马科斯说：“我们使用了很可能是10立方米的残渣材料，在基地内部，从破旧的房子里出来。”马托斯说，“这是个很好的诗意姿态，但也是必要的。”另外，他们采用了当地来源的竹子，为雕塑的基础创造了一个模板。

‘The struggle of building the piece became a part of it,’ explains Cantu, and fittingly, the only element of the work that was visible during the Biennial was its construction. For Cantu and Matos, however, timely completion was secondary to creating something that would leave a lasting impression. The artists were given a rare opportunity on the island: their work would be one of a handful of permanent installations by foreign artists. Though Cantu and Matos held an informal groundbreaking ceremony at the end of June, it will be officially inaugurated this coming autumn.

坎图解释说：“建造这件作品的斗争成了它的一部分。”恰如其分的是，在两年展期间，作品中唯一可以看到的元素就是它的建造。然而，对于坎图和马托斯来说，及时完成是次要的，因为这会给人留下持久的印象。这些艺术家在岛上获得了难得的机会：他们的作品将是外国艺术家为数不多的永久装置之一。虽然坎图和马托斯在六月底举行了一个非正式的开创性仪式，但它将在今年秋天正式揭幕。

Tenaza’s cultural and historical significance doesn’t stop there. The piece, which measures 4m in diameter and 6m tall, is the first architectural use of an ecological concrete called LC3. Dr Fernando Martirena developed the material, the production of which pollutes 40 per cent less than its traditional counterpart by replacing clinker that comes from coal mining with an organic clay. Paired with forms inspired by the city’s art deco architecture, the concrete’s unique texture and colour allows it to blend seamlessly into its environment. ‘It’s a bizarre looking piece,’ Matos admits, ‘but I think that the people of Havana find it beautiful because they are already somehow familiar with its aesthetics.’

Tenaza的文化和历史意义并不停留在那里。该试件的直径为4m，高6m，是称为LC3的生态混凝土的首次建筑使用。FernandoMartiena博士开发了该材料，通过用有机粘土替代煤矿开采的熟料，其生产污染了40%。根据城市艺术装饰建筑的灵感形成的形式，混凝土独特的质地和颜色使它能够无缝地融入其环境。“这是个奇怪的看起来，”马托斯承认，“但我认为哈瓦那的人们会发现它是美丽的，因为他们已经熟悉了它的美学。”

Ultimately, he says, ‘The most interesting thing is how the piece gets appropriated.’ Located in front of the Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital and adjacent to the Malecón, the sculpture’s location is also home to a fried chicken stand and a busy bus stop. ‘It’s a very alive, raw part of the city,’ adds Cantu. ‘Thousands of people pass through it each day.’

最终，他说，“最有趣的事情是如何让这篇文章变得合适。”这座雕塑位于Hermanos Ameijeiras医院前，毗邻Malecón，这里还有一个炸鸡摊和一个繁忙的汽车站。坎图补充说，这是这座城市生机勃勃、生机勃勃的地方。“每天都有千千万万的人通过它。”

Tenaza has quickly become a meeting place in the bustling plaza. ‘I think that we’re missing a lot of the more abstract architecture that can be just that,’ Matos says. The sculpture’s staircase leads to eight seats in a circular formation, which when used, naturally foster the feeling of being at a table and according to the artists, generate conversation.

在熙熙攘攘的广场上，特纳扎很快成为了一个聚会场所。Matos说，我认为我们缺少了很多更抽象的体系结构。这座雕塑的楼梯以圆形的形式形成了八个座位，当使用时，自然会培养出一种坐在桌子前的感觉，根据艺术家们的说法，这种感觉会产生对话。

Cantu and Matos otherwise leave Tenaza’s function up to its users. Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel gave it the official stamp of approval as a national monument and as such, the sculpture is now a formalised and permanent addition to the city. Since its completion, Tenaza has transcended its role as a public art installation – it is a play structure for neighbourhood children and a spot to drink rum, practice rituals from the local religion Santería and, in its shadow, escape from the intense Cuban sun. ‘It’s beginning to have a life of its own,’ Cantu muses. §

Cantu和Matos将Tenaza的功能留给其用户。古巴总统米格尔·德霍斯·阿尔纳尔(MiguelDinaaz-Canel)将批准的官方邮票命名为国家纪念碑，因此，雕塑现在是这座城市的正式和永久的补充。自从它完成后，Tenaza已经超越了它作为公共艺术设施的角色，它是邻里儿童的一个游戏结构，也是喝朗姆酒的地方，当地宗教疗养院的实践仪式，以及它的阴影中，逃离强烈的古巴太阳。“它开始有自己的生活，”CantuMuse。?