top of page

"Art will not be beauty
and novelty, but efficiency and agitation."

 – Excerpt from “The Art of Meanings” - León Ferrari, 1968

20091221_ella_235 copy.jpg

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

bottom of page