Cuban Evolution: Photographs by Joakim Eskildsen

2 minute read

“For centuries, Cuba’s greatest resource has been its people,” writes Pico Iyer in an extended essay on the Caribbean nation in this week’s magazine. In the twilight of the Castro era, Cubans are finding that change brings both hope and anxiety.

To pair with Iyer’s tome, TIME called upon Danish photographer Joakim Eskildsen. Eskildsen, who previously photographed a large portfolio for TIME on the state of poverty in America, traveled to Cuba for ten days, photographing urban housing projects in Havana and rural settlements across the countryside. With the help of local journalist Abel Gonzalez Alayon, Eskildsen photographed tobacco plantations, roadside fruit vendors, migrant workers and beachfront resorts — capturing all in the vibrant saturation of medium-format color film.

“I immediately fell in awe with the complexity of this country,” says Eskildsen. “The more you learn about the situation and how people are living, the more difficult it becomes to understand. It was like learning to view the world form a Cuban angle that kept surprising and inspiring me.”

To read Pico Iyer’s extended essay on Cuba, subscribe here. Already a subscriber? Click here.


Joakim Eskildsen is a Danish photographer based in Berlin. LightBox previously featured Eskildsen’s Home Works and Below the Line: Portraits of American Poverty.

Abel Gonzalez Alayon is a journalist based in Cuba. Follow him on Twitter @abelcuba.


9183.6_3702.6 001 -- Old American car from the 1940s and 50s are running through Cuba as they did 60 years ago. Still, sometimes they just can’t go anymore, like this one at Guanabo beach, 15 miles east of Havana city
An old American car, long a staple of Cuban roads, sits along Guanabo Beach, near Havana.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9089.4_3632.4 001 -- 9089 Group of youngsters, ages 13-16, in Central Havana, sits on a corner to discuss the latest news of Spanish La Liga, especially who is better between Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi. Their hairdos follow their idol’s, whether a soccer star or a reggeaton singer
A group of youngsters in Central Havana sit on a street corner to discuss the latest news of the Spanish La Liga football league. Their hair is styled like their idols'—soccer stars and Reggaeton singers.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9091.11_3619.11 001 -- Carlos, 62, is a poor welder who comes to buy the cheapest cigarettes available (35 cents of a dollar for a pack of 20) at a government cafeteria before heading to his factory
In route to his job as a welder, 62-year-old Carlos stops at a government cafeteria to buy cigarettes. Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9174.9_3711.9 001 -- One of the most Cuban traditions, cock fighting has to be done in an anticraft bunker to avoid the police. Fighting is not forbidden, but gambling, always present, is.
Cockfighting, a Cuban tradition, takes place in an anti-aircraft bunker to avoid the police. Fighting is not forbidden, but gambling, which is always present at the matches, is.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9181.7_3704.7 001 -- Antonio Perez Hernandez shows off his fighting cock prior to a fight in Campo Florido. His animal weights 3.5 pounds and has won its four fights, a source of pride for Antonio.
Antonio Perez Hernandez shows off his prize-winning rooster prior to a fight in Campo Florido. Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
Havana’s most famous street, the Malecon at6 PM the day the cold front arrives and the sea gets choppy, and waves spray passing cars and pedestrians
Havana’s most famous street, the Malecón, as a cold front rolls in.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9166.12_3713.12 001 -- Rodney Cajiga having his hair cut in Justiz, a small town two miles from Guanabo beach, in Havana city. “Teacher told me to have shorter hair by Monday, so here I am”
At his teacher's request, Rodney Cajiga, gets his hair cut in Justiz, a small town east of Havana.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
Corrugated zinc sheets barely cover a grocery store.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9185.5_3700.5 001 -- Jesus, a fisherman from Puerto Escondido, has just returned from the sea. “It was a good day, despite the cold front” he says while showing one of the fishes he caught
Jesus, a fisherman from Puerto Escondido, returns from the sea. “It was a good day, despite the cold front,” he said, displaying one of the fish he caught.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9117.6+7_3650.6+7 001 -- Roberto, 22, is a drop out from college in the East, moved to small cottage to work a farm in Havana with his father Jorge: “My wife got pregnant and I had to support her and the child. Here I have a chance”
Roberto, 22, is a college dropout from the East, who moved to a small cottage in Havana to farm with his father, Jorge. “My wife got pregnant and I had to support her and the child. Here I have a chance," he said.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
A pumpkin for sale, cut in half for clients to see it is still fresh.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9145.1.3674.1 001 Delvis Montero has made charcoal since she was 17. At 39, with two sons, she works 7 days without going home, sleeping under the stars, to make some 100 USD a month. “I work hard so my children can go to school and never have to do this extremely hard work”
Delvis Montero, 39, works seven days a week making charcoal and earns $100 a month. “I work hard so my children can go to school and never have to do this extremely hard work," she said.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9158.6.3727.6 001
Madelin, who works at a Havana boutique, hitchhikes to work each morning rather than taking the bus.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9086.1_3627.1 001 -- 9086 around 7 PM Cubans start preparing their dinner and Central Havana streets, usually crowded, look this deserted at dusk.
Around 7 in the evening, Cubans begin preparing dinner. Central Havana, usually crowded, look deserted.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9151.1_3686.11 001 -- At night, the town where the famous Australia sugar mill is located, is very still, and neighbors leave their doors open for the breeze to come in. This sugar mill was Fidel Castro’s headquarters when the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961.  
At night, neighbors leave their doors open to let the breeze in.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9193.6_3692.6 001 -- Yunier Utre, 19, lives in the Teodoro Rivero settlement in Jaguey Grande, Matanzas province. He works in the mango plantations from sunup to sundown
Yunier Utre, 19, lives in the Teodoro Rivero settlement in Jaguey Grande, Matanzas province. He works in the mango plantations from sunup to sundown.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9154.12_3683.12 001 -- Tourists laying down on lounge chairs at Melia Las Americas in Varadero, next to the only 18-hole golf course in Cuba
Tourists relax on lounge chairs at Melia Las Americas in Varadero, which is next to the only 18-hole golf course in Cuba.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9157.11_3728.11 001 -- Actually looking dangerous this electric system at a tenement in Old Havana resembles an spider. The wiring is done by the inhabitants of the place
The wiring for the electrical system at a tenement in Old Havana.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9095.11+12.3626.11+12 001 -- =
Old Havana at dusk.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9131.8_3661.8 001 -- Juan Lara, 72, takes his cows every morning to graze some 10 miles from home. Riding on his horse is the true expression of a Cuban rancher
Juan Lara, 72, takes his cows to graze roughly 10 miles from his home every morning.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9139.11_3680.11 002 -- Juan Carlos has been a fisherman all his life. Close to 70, he keeps this cottage in the Puerto Escondido fishermen’s village, but stresses that “I have a real house in my town, 20 miles from here”
Juan Carlos has been a fisherman all his life. Close to 70, he keeps this cottage in the Puerto Escondido fishermen’s village. “I have a real house in my town, 20 miles from here," Carlos said.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9122.3_3669.3 001 -- Jaguey Grande’s Library: students from nearby schools come every day to do their homework.
Jaguey Grande’s Library, where students from nearby schools come every day to do their homework.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9195.11_3691.11 001 -- Fidel Hernandez sets fire to the bushes around the fence he just raised to keep his goats. He has taken grandson with him, since he loves to hang around his grandpa.
Fidel Hernandez sets fire to the bushes around the fence he just installed to keep his goats enclosed. He has taken his grandson with him, as he says that he loves to hang around his grandpa.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9125.2_3667.2 001 -- Small private businesses have spread all over Cuba. At the small farmers’ community Pedro Pi, a small cafeteria shows times are changing.
The growth of small private businesses, like this one in Pedro Pi, is a sign of changing times.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9124.7_3668.7 001 -- Lady at telephone booth in Pedro Pi town. There is only one phone at this farmer’s community 12 miles from downtown Havana. Neighbors come, make their calls, get their messages, and share gossip
A woman at a telephone booth in Pedro Pi. There is only one phone in this farmer’s community, 12 miles from downtown Havana. Neighbors come to make their calls, get their messages and share gossip.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9127.1_3665.1 001 -- The government-run car repair shop in Jaguey Grande boasts its colorful painting
A government-run auto repair shop in Jaguey Grande.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9153.5_3684.5 001 -- Not all boarding schools were transformed into settlements. Now in the area you find huge concrete structures that used to be schools, and this theater shows the decadence of a whole educational system
A huge concrete school building. Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9148.5_3689.5 001 -- Ricardo Rodriguez and his wife, Josefa Perez, travel 30 miles every day to the twon of Ceres to buy charcoal that they later sale in the twon of cardenas, near the varadaero resort in Matanzas province. “The profits are meager, but we survive on that” he claims
Ricardo Rodriguez and his wife travel 30 miles every day to the town of Ceres to buy charcoal that they later sell in the town of Cardenas, near the Varadaero resort in Matanzas province. “The profits are meager, but we survive on that," Rodriguez said.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9178.7_3607.7 001 -- Aguedo Leon (far right), 82,goes to the cattle register in Campo Florido, Havana city, to report the birth of acalf. It is mandatory for farmers to do it immediately after the cow delivers. Ignoring this can result in a 20 dollar fine
Aguedo Leon (far right), 82, goes to the cattle register in Campo Florido, Havana city, to report the birth of a calf. It is mandatory for farmers to do so immediately after the cow delivers. Failing to report a new birth can result in a $20 fine.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9108.11_3641.11 001 -- Old American car being used as a taxi. The bodywork  might fool you: it hides a 2008 Hyundai diesel engine, and other Korean and Japanese parts
Outside Havana, an old American car with a new Japanese engine is used as a taxi.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9185.12_3700.12 001 -- At the Puerto Escondido fishermen’svillage a welder repairs the carriage they use to move the fishes into town
At the Puerto Escondido fishermen’s village, a welder repairs the carriage they use to move fish into town.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9120.12.3653.12 001
Riding on horse drawn carriages is still the main way to move in the Cuban countryside.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9112.2_3645.2 001 -- Ormiles Lores Rodriguez, 40, works as an accountant at the Grito de Baire farmimg cooperative. She says salaries have improved and they get bonuses every three months is they meet their output quotas
Ormiles Lores Rodriguez, 40, works as an accountant at the Grito de Baire farmimg cooperative. She says salaries have improved and employees get bonuses every three months if they meet their output quotas.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9095.2.3626.2 001
Dusk falls on Old Havana.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9184.11_3701.11 001 -- Despite its age, his drives claims it can travel at a 100 miles per hour, thanks to its smart engineering that includes a mixture of American Russian, Japanese and Cuban parts.
Despite its age, the driver claims his car can reach speeds of 100 miles per hour, thanks to its engineering that includes a mix of American, Russian, Japanese and Cuban parts.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9105.12_3633.12 001 -- Two youngsters in Old Havana wait for a girl to go out. “We dressed up to impress her…and we take pictures to our barber for him to know exactly what we want” they joke
Two young men wait to go out with a girl in Old Havana. "We dress to impress her," they said, "and we take pictures to our barber for him to know exactly what we want."Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9123.8_3670.8 001 -- Alicia, 8, crossed the street to buy some candies in Patricia’s cafeteria, 2 miles from Guanabo beach
Alicia, 8, crosses the street to buy candy in Patricia’s Cafeteria, 2 miles from Guanabo beach.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9105.6_3633.6 001 --
An aging car drives through Old Havana at dusk.Joakim Eskildsen for TIME
9090.1_3633.1 001 -- Lady on the Malecon praying to Yemaya, the sea goddess. Whenever the waves hit the wall, Sara, dressed in the blue colors of the deity, makes a pray for good health, and good business for her and her relatives.
A woman prays to Yemaya, the sea goddess, on the Malecón, Havana's main esplanade. Joakim Eskildsen for TIME

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