Casa de las Américas (cover designer: Umberto Peña, director: Roberto Fernández Retamar), "Casa de las Américas, Número 121, Julio-Agosto 1980," July-August 1980. Offset print, magazine.

This commemorative issue of Casa de las Américas (Number 121, July-August 1980) celebrates the institution's 20th anniversary while mourning the recent death of Haydée Santamaría, the revolutionary who founded and directed Casa de las Américas from its inception. The striking Op Art-influenced cover, designed by Umberto Peña, features bold concentric circles in black and white with vibrant rainbow-colored stripes, centered around the number "20" rendered in multiple colors—a dynamic visual celebration of two decades of Latin American cultural exchange. Published under Roberto Fernández Retamar's direction, this special issue includes the section "Ante la Muerte de la Compañera Haydée Santamaría" (On the Death of Comrade Haydée Santamaría) and tributes to Alejo Carpentier. The magazine reflects on Casa de las Américas' role as the cultural organ of the institution created by the Cuban Revolution just months after its 1959 victory, serving as proof of the revolution's "essentially Latin American and Caribbean character." This issue represents a bittersweet moment—celebrating the remarkable achievement of 20 years of fostering continental solidarity through literature and culture while honoring Santamaría's legacy as the "extraordinary revolutionary" and "unforgettable comrade" whose vision made Casa de las Américas the premier platform for Latin American intellectual and artistic exchange during the Cold War era.