Allison Hill Quotations

Very few artists have studios with a gallery and sign outside. Others are simply working out of their apartment or their house. Through contacts, they start to show in Cuba. If they are lucky, they will be picked up by galleries in the United States or Europe.

I was struck by how many people responded to just one tiny store and one tiny company that they probably never heard of before. It makes you realize that people really do want to help if they can; sometimes all you need to do is ask.

My role was to contact the celebrities. I knew that these people get so many requests that I really needed to do something that stood out. So I went to Hoffman's Chocolates and had them do a chocolate star. Then I put my letter on top of that. The first round I sent out 25 chocolate stars with letters packed in coolers. I figured everyone loves chocolate and it would get people's attention. Considering how many we sent out, the response has been pretty unbelievable. Courtney Cox sent a handwritten thank-you note. Isn't that incredible?

Julie has been working nonstop, and she's still creating. She sent her family away on vacation and I don't think she's slept in two weeks. The clothes are so amazing; she has really managed to capture the personality of the celebrity in each outfit. Our greatest hope is that this will be so successful it will inspire a bigger auction next year.

Rumors travel fast in Cuba. Artists know I'm there before I get there. It's not hard to find the artists but it is hard to see everything.

It's an interesting situation. Because a lot of people have time and opportunity, you get more art. Here, artists don't worry so much about being financially viable, so they try everything. They get to be more experimental.