Month: September 2008

Curated by Marvette Pérez & Tonya Jordan
October 4-November 1, 2008

H & F Fine Arts
3311 Rhode Island Avenue
Mount Rainier, MD 20712

OPENING RECEPTION, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4 2008,  5-8 PM

Master woodcut artist and painter Marta Pėrez García will exhibit her latest prints, paintings and drawings exploring space, performance, movement and the translocations and transformations of creatures.  In this exhibit the artist plays with the possibilities and limits of different media  as well as the connections between the different works of art.  The eternal transformations in these artworks point to instabilities  and possibilities and are “a war against empty space” as culturl critic Juan Carlos Quintero Herencia has observed. With mastery of the reduction method in woodcutting, Marta Pėrez García’s work raises the bar of the possibilities of woodcuts and the uses of color and space.  Marta Pérez García is Winner of the 2001 Grand Prize Latin American & Caribbean Biennal of Printmaking.  In 2007 she had a solo show at Cloitre des Billetes and exhibited at the Grand Palais, Paris, France. She also had a solo show of small
format paintings at Galeria Botello, San Juan Puerto Rico.

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE DOWNLOAD ATTACHMENT

GALLERY HOURS: Thu.-Fri. 11am-7pm, Sat. 10am-5pm, Sun. 11am-3pm
www.hffinearts.com – info contact Marvette Perez  240.535-0278 – marvetteperez@verizon.net

Directions to the gallery:
http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=Mount++Rainier&state=MD&address=3311+Rhode+Island+Av.&zipcode=20712&cat=H+%26+F+Finearts+Gallery#a/search/l::3311+Rhode+Island+Ave:Mount+Rainier:MD:20712-2058:US:38.935859:-76.96186:address:Prince+George’s+County/m::11:38.932542:-76.961917:0::/so:H+&+F+Finearts+Gallery:::d::25:::::/e

Posters from the Division of Community Education of Puerto Rico, 1949-1989 Opens at the Smithsonian WASHINGTON, DC.-

“Posters from the Division of Community Education (DIVEDCO) of Puerto Rico, 1949-1989,” on view Sept. 17 through Jan. 18, 2009, at the S. Dillon Ripley Center’s Concourse, highlights Puerto Rican poster art from the 1940s through 1980s. This exhibition was organized by Marvette Perez, curator at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, and the Smithsonian Latino Center as part of the 2008 program series “Puerto Rico at the Smithsonian.”

The posters in the exhibition were produced by artists enlisted by a government agency known as DIVEDCO, as part of a broader effort to stimulate artistic production in Puerto Rico while transforming its rural population into a model of modern, democratic citizenry. The posters featured in the exhibition illustrate the connection between art and social policy during one of Puerto Rico’s most culturally defining decades—the 1950s—and into the 1980s. Representing the work of some of Puerto Rico’s best graphic artists, the exhibition will include rich educational programming and a film series of short and feature length films.

“DIVEDCO was a unique and powerfully Puerto Rican adaptation of New Deal-era programs, placing art at the service of solving the everyday problems of people on the island,” said Daniel Sheehy, acting director of the Smithsonian Latino Center. “As an incubator, DIVEDCO yielded an entire generation of graphic artists, filmmakers and writers, many of whom, like Rafael Tufiño, Amílcar Tirado and René Marqués, would bring Puerto Rican art to the attention of the world.”

DIVEDCO was signed into law by the first elected governor of Puerto Rico, Luis Muñoz Marín, in 1949. Under Gov. Muñoz Marín’s leadership, the island underwent dramatic changes with increases in urbanization and industrialization projects. The main concerns of the newly minted government were issues of democracy, health, education and the economy. More than a government agency, DIVEDCO was a social and cultural experiment that aimed to reach the masses, especially in remote areas of the island.

These structural and social changes began during the 1930s with President Roosevelt’s New Deal projects, such as the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration, aimed at developing the agricultural sector and improving the living conditions of the urban poor and rural populations. DIVEDCO became a pedagogical enterprise that followed in the steps of the Farm Security Administration and the Works Projects Administration, the largest New Deal agency.

DIVEDCO included film, editorial and graphic arts sections that worked together to create didactic films, booklets and posters. These were vehicles for educating Puerto Ricans about democracy, values, civic duty, hygiene and nutrition. They also became aesthetic and social documents about a rural way of life, which was rapidly disappearing. The Film Division was a training ground for Puerto Rican filmmakers, such as Tirado and Luis Maisonet. The Print Workshop also became important for many established and aspiring artists. Isabel Bernal, José Meléndez Contreras, Eduardo Vera Cortés, Lorenzo Homar, Julio Rosado del Valle and Tufiño, among many others, created great art working cooperatively. They worked closely with the filmmakers and the writers of the DIVEDCO Writer’s Workshop in order to create a strong and deep connection among their graphics, films and storylines. The Writer’s Workshop included many important writers such as Marqués, Pedro Juan Soto and Emilio Díaz Valcárcel. Their short stories, texts for the Libros para el Pueblo (Books for the People) and scripts became the basis for the films and the posters advertising them. The camaraderie among these artists reflected their vision for the future of Puerto Rico.

This exhibition is part of the“Puerto Rico at the Smithsonian” programming series, which includes, among other activities and events, a poetry workshop and reading with Puerto Rican scholars, poets and students; a Puerto Rican concert and music workshop; and a traveling exhibition of famed baseball sports legend Roberto Clemente. “Puerto Rico at the Smithsonian,” produced in collaboration with the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, a Smithsonian affiliate, continues the Center’s tradition of highlighting a different Latin culture each year, with this year’s focus on the cultural richness of Puerto Rico.

Mexico’s most awarded film; 13 awards and 6 nominations.
Genre: Art/Foreign, Drama and Politics/Religion. Plot: The quietly dignified Don Plutarco, his son Genaro and grandson Lucio make a humble living as traveling musicians. They also collect supplies and ammunition for the guerrilla movement that has arisen in response to the tyrannical regime. Upon returning to their hometown after one journey, they find it has been occupied by the army and their fellow villagers have been forced into hiding. Genaro leaves to find a way to salvage the supplies. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to his son, Plutarco attempts to recover the ammunition himself and courageously approaches the squad captain.

Join Dr. Eyda Merediz during this once in a lifetime experience exploring the history and cultures of Ecuador from the colonial period to the onset of independence January 5th – 25th. Participants will stay with local Quiteño families providing full room and board. While traveling, students will be housed in dormitories.  For more information, visit the Study Abroad website.

Celebrate Community Day & Hispanic Heritage Month
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Only $10.00
(Please mention promotion when you make reservation)

September 18-October 12, 2008 – Thu-Sat 8 pm, Sun 3 pm

For more Ticket Info visit www.galatheatre.org

GALA Hispanic Theatre
3333 14th St. NW
Washington, DC 20010
one block from the Columbia Heights Metro Station
Secure parking at Giant on Park Rd.

BRAZIL MOVES, A Month-Long Celebration of Brazilian Life, Arts, Food and Culture
The Brazilian Embassy in Washington, D.C. announced today the launch of “Brazil Moves”, a month long celebration of Brazilian life, arts, food and culture.  From August 22 to September 27, …

Read more online via the Brazilian Embassy Newsletter.

El Salvador’s Children – Risk, Poverty and Education
January 8-23, 2009
EDSP 488B/788B/ CPSP 379E (3 credits)

Instructors: Dr. Paula Beckman

Teaching Assistant: Mr. Tom Sabella
Don’t miss this opportunity to think outside your Borders! This 3 credit,
study abroad course is an opportunity to learn first hand about complex
relationship between poverty, risk and education in El Salvador. The
Washington metropolitan area has the 2nd largest population of Salvadorans
in the United States, so children who have immigrated from El Salvador and
other parts of Central America are increasingly filling our schools and
public service agencies. See first hand the many challenges they overcome
and the educational situation available to many of the families who choose
to emigrate to the US.

During this trip you will live with campesino families in a poor rural
village who struggle to survive on as little as $300 year. You will work
along side them to improve educational opportunity in a school or
village. It is a meaningful adventure in which you can make a difference
for children who desperately need educational opportunities.

Applications are due in the Study Abroad office no later than October 2.
There are a limited number of slots available for this course, so apply
soon if you are interested.

Please visit the web site below to learn more
http://www.international.umd.edu/studyabroad/6350

Contact Dr. Beckman pbeckman@umd.edu or Mr. Tom Sabella
tomsabella7@yahoo.com if you have any questions.

in cooperation with the Association of American Publishers

and Borders Stores Present the September 2008 Selection:

More Than This

by Margo Candela

Join us for discussion on September 17^th at 6:30 pm

Location: 1801 K Street NW (L Street entrance), Washington, DC

Please RSVP at www.lascomadres.org (Book Club)