Miami Beach hotel takes down Che-inspired portrait

Miami Beach hotel takes down Che-inspired portrait

Miami Beach hotel takes down Che-inspired portrait

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A luxury Miami Beach hotel has taken down a piece of art inspired by the image of Ernesto “Che” Guevara after it upset some in the Cuban exile community.

The work by British artist Gavin Turk was taken down from the W South Beach on Tuesday. It featured Turk’s own face but with the scraggly beard, beret and revolutionary garb worn by Guevara in a now iconic 1960 photograph by Alberto Korda.

According to El Nuevo Herald (http://hrld.us/11GD5xp), the hotel began receiving telephone calls and messages through social media from Cuban-Americans expressing their frustration. Many exiles despise Guevara for his role in bringing communism to Cuba.

The W South Beach issued a statement saying it respects the community’s concerns and decided to remove the portrait from the property.