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Wifredo
Lam

Wifredo Lam is celebrated for his dynamic synthesis of Surrealism, Afro-Cuban symbolism, and modernist abstraction. If you’re looking for original Wifredo Lam prints and editions for sale or would like to sell, request a complimentary valuation and browse our network’s most in-demand works.

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Biography

Born in 1902 in Sagua La Grande, Cuba, Wifredo Lam was exposed to a diverse cultural heritage from an early age, with a Chinese father and an Afro-Cuban mother. After studying in Havana and later at the Academy of San Fernando in Madrid, Lam found inspiration in Spanish modernist movements and the works of Francisco Goya. His exposure to European avant-garde styles deepened when he moved to Paris in 1938, where he became closely associated with artists like Pablo Picasso and André Breton.

During World War II, Lam returned to Cuba, which marked a pivotal turning point in his career. His paintings began to reflect his renewed engagement with Afro-Cuban spirituality and iconography, infused with the modernist techniques he absorbed in Europe. This blend of influences led to his distinctive style, which incorporated Afro-Cuban mythology, abstract forms, and vibrant colour.


Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Lam's work underwent a metamorphosis as he integrated the surreal and the symbolic. His work, The Jungle, is a tour de force of this period, capturing his concerns with identity, colonialism, and spirituality. His work captured the imagination of the international art world, leading to significant exhibitions across the globe, including major retrospectives at the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Lam's career was punctuated by numerous critical exhibitions across Europe and the Americas, establishing his reputation as a pioneering transnational artist. His work defied simple categorisation, spanning Surrealism, Cubism, and Abstraction, all the while maintaining a dialogue with the practices of his homeland.


A vertical painting featuring abstracted, interwoven shapes that appear to combine human and animal elements against a background of palm-frond-shaped patterns in vibrant blues, pinks, purples, whites, golds, and greens. The elongated, stylised forms have mask-like features and sharp, angular limbs.

Omi Obini © Wifredo Lam 1943

1. £6.7M for Wifredo Lam's Omi Obini

This painting achieved Lam's current auction record when it sold at Sotheby's New York in June 2020, after inclusion in private collections and exhibitions in Havana, Washington, Paris, Madrid, and Barcelona. It was created during a critical period after Lam's return to Cuba from Europe after two decades away, in the same year as La Jungla (1942-43) (now in MoMA's permanent collection). Omi Obini (which means “woman” in the Yoruba language) (1943), depicts interwoven hybrid figures that combine human, animal, and plant elements against a vibrant, colourful background reminiscent of the lush tropical landscape of Cuba. As Lam later explained: “My return to Cuba meant, above all, a great stimulation of my imagination, as well as the exteriorisation of my world. I responded always to the presence of factors which emanated from our history and our geography, tropical flowers, and black culture.” Lam wanted to “act as a Trojan horse that would spew forth hallucinating figures with the power to surprise, to disturb the dreams of the exploiters.”

A horizontal composition with abstract white linear forms against a dark green background. The painting features angular, ghostly shapes that appear to float in space, created with sharp white lines that suggest fragmented or deconstructed figures in a minimal, ethereal arrangement.

Trois Centimètres De La Terre © Wifredo Lam 1962

2. £3.4M for Wifredo Lam's Trois Centimètres De La Terre

This substantial 2.2 metre oil painting sold at Sotheby's Paris in December 2017, out of the collection of Alain and Candice Fraiberger. Trois Centimètres De La Terre (1962) showcases Lam's seemingly effortless handling of line and form through a complex composition of abstracted, angular figures. The figures, being conjoined in places and similar in size and shape, are possibly iterations of the same figure moving through time - a visual representation of spiritual transformation. The title itself (Three Centimetres From Earth) reinforces this concept, suggesting a liminal space between the earthly and spiritual realms, a common theme in Lam's work that reflects the Santería belief in the interconnectedness of the physical and supernatural worlds. Throughout the composition, there is a deliberate tension between Lam's abstraction and his figuration, with each approach seeming to obscure the intent of the other, creating a visual puzzle. This sophisticated interplay demonstrates the artistic maturity Lam had achieved by this period, reflecting his continued exploration of Afro-Cuban spirituality and his ongoing development of a distinctive fusion of European Modernist techniques with Caribbean cultural references.

A vertically-oriented canvas depicting ethereal, abstracted figures in ochre and dark green. Specks of additional pink, blue, and green are visible in the feathers of a bird-like creature in the lower right. The composition suggests an undefined spiritual presence with elongated forms that blend human and supernatural elements, rendered with both precise lines and geometric shapes as well as softer, atmospheric areas that create a sense of mystery and otherworldliness. Five sets of round, blank eyes appear to look out at the viewer.

Ídolo (Oya/Divinité De L'Air Et De La Mort) © Wifredo Lam 1944

3. £2.5M for Wifredo Lam's Ídolo (Oya/Divinité De L'Air Et De La Mort)

This work from 1944 achieved $1 million above its high estimate at Sotheby's New York in May 2012. The work is rich in Afro-Cuban religious iconography, specifically referencing Oya, the Santería deity associated with winds, lightning, and guarding the gates between life and death. It combines oil and charcoal techniques to create a mysterious, spectral finish - but with strikingly prominent eyes - that embodies the liminal nature of the deity it represents. Having spent several years reconnecting with the cultural heritage of his homeland following his return from Europe, Lam was particularly interested in how the spiritual traditions of Santería and Afro-Cuban religions had preserved African cultural elements despite the brutal history of slavery and colonisation. The painting's exhibition history is particularly notable, having been shown at numerous prestigious institutions, including MoMA, the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington D.C., the Palais des Papes in Avignon in 1947, and the Hayward Gallery in London.

A large dark canvas featuring angular, elongated figures in golden-brown tones arranged against a black background textured with rough brushstrokes. The figures are both abstract and geometric, employing circles and triangles to form their heads and limbs. Their arrangement suggests a ritual of some kind, moving around a central source of light.

Peinture, Nous L'Attendons © Wifredo Lam 1951