"Art will not be beauty
and novelty, but efficiency and agitation."
– Excerpt from “The Art of Meanings” - León Ferrari, 1968
Ella Fontanals-Cisneros
About Us
Mission & History
The Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation (CIFO) is a non-profit organization founded in 2002 by Ella Fontanals-Cisneros and her family to foster cultural exchange and enhance the arts. Over the years, CIFO has gained recognition in the international art community for its significant contributions to promoting Latin American contemporary art.
The foundation's mission is to support the advancement of cultural understanding and educational dialogue between Latin American artists and global audiences. CIFO provides a platform for emerging, mid-career, and established Latin American artists through initiatives such as the Grants & Commissions Program, Traveling Exhibitions Program, The CIFO Collection, and various related art and cultural projects both in the U.S. and internationally. Since its inception, CIFO has awarded over $2 million to more than 150 Latin American artists and has showcased their work.
CIFO also serves as the guardian of the Ella Fontanals-Cisneros Collection, one of modern and contemporary art's most significant international collections. Numerous pieces from the EFC Collection have been loaned long-term to prestigious institutions, including Tate Modern in London, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, and the Guggenheim Museum in New York and Bilbao.
CIFO believes in forging relationships within the art community. We strive to inspire Latin American artists, nurture their creativity, and help them transcend as artists.
At Cifo, we believe in forging relationships within the art community. We strive to inspire Latin American artists, nurture their creativity and help them transcend as artists.
leadership
Board of Directors:
Founder and Honorary President
Ella Fontanals-Cisneros
President
Manuel de Santare
Mariela Cisneros-Mestre
Claudia Cisneros
Jesús Fuenmayor
Adriana Gómez
Marianne Hernández
Rafael Lozano-Hemmer
Cuauhtémoc Medina González
Andreina Pérez-Cisneros
Gloria Sesana
Mayi de la Vega
Advisory Committee:
CIFO Grants and Commissions Program:
Adan Vallecillo / Honduras / Artist, curator
Adriano Pedrosa / Brazil / Curator, art director
Adrienne Samos / Panama / Editor, curator, art critic, translator
Ana Rosa Valdez / Ecuador, El Salvador / Curator, critic, editor
Carlos Garaicoa / Cuba, Spain / Artist
Carmen Alicia Di Pasquale/ Venezuela / Curator, researcher, professor
Cecilia Fajardo-Hill / Venezuela, England / Curator, researcher
Celia Rodríguez Tejuca/ Cuba, USA / Scholar, researcher
Clarisa Appendino / Argentina / Curator
Cristina Vives / Cuba / Curator, art critic
Direlia Lazo / Miami, Cuba, Mexico / Curator
Elvis Fuentes / Cuba, USA / Curator, writer, professor
Eugenio Viola / Italia, Colombia / Curator, art critic
Fernanda Pitta / Brazil / Professor, curator
Fernanda Brenner / Brazil / Curator, writer
Gabriela Urtiaga / Argentina, USA / Curator
Gean Moreno/ Miami, USA / Artist, curator, art critic, writer
Gladys Turner Bosso / Panama / Arquitect, curator, cultural manager
Guillermo Santamarina / Mexico / Art critic, curator, artist
Gustavo Buntinx / Argentina, Peru / Curator, art critic
Hamlet Fernández / Cuba, Brazil / Art critic, professor
Isabel García Pérez de Arce / Chile / Artist, curator, researcher, educator
Jaime Gili / Venezuela, England / Artist
José Roca / Colombia / Curator, artistic director
Juan Canela / Spain, Panama / Curator, writer
Kaira Cabañas/ USA / Curator, scholar, writer
María Iovino / Colombia / Curator, researcher, professor
Michy Marxuach / Puerto Rico / Curator, cultural producer
Miguel Ángel López / Peru, USA / Curator, writer, researcher
Moacir Dos Anjos / Brazil / Curator, writer, researcher
Oscar Muñoz / Colombia / Artist
Oscar Roldán-Alzate / Colombia / Curator, art critic
Patricia Belli / Nicaragua / Artist
Ramon Castillo / Chile / Curator, scholar
Raquel Shwartz / Bolivia / Artist, curator
René Francisco Rodríguez / Cuba, Spain / Artist, profesor, curator
Rodolfo Kronfle Chambers / Ecuador / Curator, cultural producer
Rosina Cazali / Guatemala / Curator, cultural promoter
Sagrario Berti / Venezuela / Curator, photography historian, researcher of contemporary visual culture
Sharon Lerner / Peru, USA / Curator, art critic, cultural manager
Tahía Rivero Ponte / Venezuela / Curator, art critic
Taiyana Pimentel / Cuba, Mexico / Curator
Viviana Kuri / México / Curator
Yoshua Okón / Mexico / Artist
CIFO - Ars Electronica
Jens Hauser / Germany, France / Curator, professor
Jose-Carlos Mariategui / Peru, England / Scientist, writer, curator, scholar
Maria Fernandez / Nicaragua, USA / Scholar, curator, researcher
Maria José Sanchez Varela Barajas / Mexico, Australia / Curator, professor, cultural producer
Monica Bello / Spain / Curator, writer
Tania Aedo / Mexico / Curator, cultural producer
Asher Remy-Toledo / Colombia, USA / Curator, cultural producer
Jazmín Adler/ Argentina / Scholar, curator, researcher
Joselyne Contreras Cerda / Chile / Curator, researcher, scholar
Nestor Sire/ Cuba / Artist, curator
Erandy Vergara-Vargas / Mexico, Canada / Curator, researcher, scholar
Amor Muñoz / Mexico / Artist
Dora Bartilotti / Mexico / Artist
Electrobiota / Mexico, Argentina / Artists
Ana María Gómez Lopez / Colombia, Netherland / Artist, writer, educator
Joaquín Aras/ Argentina / Artist
Jonathan Emmanuel Torres Rodriguez / Costa Rica / Artist, scholar
Guely Morato-Loredo / Bolivia / Artist, curator, cultural producer, educator
Federico Gloriani / Argentina / Artist, educator
Felipe César Londoño / Colombia / Architect, researcher, curator, scholar
Maya Errazuriz / Chile / Curator, editor
Team:
Executive Director
Susana Fontanals
Director of Operations & Collections
Sergio Fontanella
Grants & Commissions Coordinator
Ana M. Socarrás Piñón
Collections Registrar
Velia Larcinese
Social Media Content Specialist
Gabriela Solis