Artist Damian Aquiles Transforms Salvaged Materials to Create Luxury Bar Trays for FACUNDO Rum Collection

On March 28th, 2018, the Facundo Rum Collection, the luxury rums from the Bacardi family’s private reserves, will launch an exclusive collaboration with Latin American artist Damian Aquiles, unveiling ten one-of-a-kind luxury bar trays—each created as unique works of art.

Marking his first exhibition in New York since 2004, Cuban artist Aquiles is collaborating with Facundo to celebrate the exciting and diverse world of Latin American art and culture that is inherent to the brand’s origin.

From the incredible liquid to the exquisite bottles—inspired by the brand’s Cuban heritage as well as the art deco of the 1930s—Facundo has since its creation carried on the history of cultural appreciation intrinsic to Bacardi and made it its mission to “Elevate Rum to an Art Form.” Each of the Facundo rums is a masterpiece of its kind, born of 150-years of expertise in the art of rum-making but reinterpreted in a contemporary way, with the Maestro de Ron adding his own artistry to the process.

Aquiles explains the parallel he finds inspiring between his creative process and the art of blending Facundo rums:

Luxury Bar Tray for FACUNDO Rum Collection

“I chose from hundreds of raw materials to create these bar trays. It takes years of practice and vision to decide which elements have the potential to contribute to a final art piece. The materials look totally different at the beginning of the process than at the end, but I know in my mind how they can contribute to the overall work of art from the start. I can imagine a Maestro de Ron, in a similar way, has to choose amongst hundreds of rums, some aged and very complex, and decide which ones will best contribute to create an exceptional blend—that also takes expertise and vision.”
– Damian Aquiles, Artist

Luxury Bar Tray for FACUNDO Rum Collection

Each of the bar trays from the new collection is unique. Featuring vivid hues painted on salvaged and repurposed Cuban-sourced sheet metal, then doused in gasoline and fired up, no two trays are the same.

Aquiles’ work ranges from painting to installation to metalwork; he carefully selects and utilizes found materials such as discarded paint cans and scrap metals from his native Cuba and transforms them into stunning masterpieces. Aquiles chooses to work with used materials for the concentrated energy that emanates from them—by recycling these materials, he uses their previous life, energy and history to tell his own story.

Luxury Bar Tray for FACUNDO Rum Collection

Aquiles credits Beth Rudin de Woody, Paul & Nancy Pelosi, Rita Schrager and more as collectors of his work. Beyond his artwork, Aquiles and his wife Pamela Ruiz have become renowned in Cuba for their remarkable home—which can be considered a work of art itself and has been featured in numerous design publications—where they host celebrity guests such as Katy Perry, Will and Jada Smith, Rufus Wainwright and more. Facundo celebrates Aquiles’ return to the New York art scene with the launch of this collection.

Select Facundo bar trays will be displayed at Aquiles’ “Alquimista” exhibition at the Highline Gallery in Manhattan from March 29 to April 7, 2018, curated by Natalie Kates Projects.