Day of the Heroic Guerilla

Day of the Heroic Guerilla, made in 1968, is an offset lithographic image by Elena Serrano. She is a graphic artist from Cuba. This image fits in the Reaction period of Latin American history, which follows the era of revolutions that occurred from 1945-1960. Her image depicts a map of South America with Che Guevara, an Argentine medical student, who traveled around South America and eventually to Cuba over top it. Her picture incorporates smaller and smaller layers of South America over the previous one, all in different colors, making the flashy image catch your attention. On top of South America is a portrait of Che following the same shrinking layered pattern.

Che Guevara is an extremely famous figure in the context of the Cuban Revolution, which lasted from 1953-1959 and was one of the most influential revolutions of the 20^th century. Based on the ideas of Marxism, Fidel Castro overthrew the previous dictator, Fulgencio Bautista, and implemented a socialist economy to benefit the oppressed working class. Che Guevara was a huge help during the revolution as he brought theories of guerilla warfare to Cuba to aid Fidel’s forces in their fight. To this day, Che Guevara is a very appreciated figure in Cuba and Latin America as a whole due to his role in the revolution and liberating Latin America from American imperialism. Serrano most likely created this graphic to honor him, as he was a large source of inspiration to many.

Works Cited:

Serrano, Elena. “Day of the Heroic Guerilla.”