The Center for Puerto Rican Studies (CENTRO) in collaboration with Hunter East Harlem Gallery is thrilled to announce the extension of the thought-provoking exhibition, Ida y Vuelta: Experiencias de la migración en el arte puertorriqueño contemporáneo (Arrivals and Departures: Migration Experiences in Contemporary Puerto Rican Art), through December 16th, 2023. This extension aims to foster greater accessibility and engagement with local Puerto Rican and migrant communities.
The exhibition, which opened on March 30th, 2023, was initially slated to conclude on September 30th. However, due to the tremendous response and the desire to provide an extended opportunity for reflection and exploration, the exhibition will now run until December 16th on Thursdays, Fridays 12pm-5pm and Saturdays from 11am-4pm ET.
Ida y Vuelta showcases the creative endeavors of 19 artists who delve into the processes, causes, and outcomes of migration and living away from one’s place of origin. This major exhibition not only magnifies the complexities of migration but also underscores the enduring artistic resonance it holds. It marks CENTRO’s first collaboration in a decade with the Hunter East Harlem Gallery, an auspicious partnership coinciding with the 50th Anniversary of CENTRO Library & Archives.
Ángel Antonio Ruiz-Laboy, Director of Arts & Culture at CENTRO, emphasized the importance of this artistic perspective in understanding migration narratives, stating, “Our migration processes require exploration not only through data but also through the lens of art. Collaborating with Hunter College Art Galleries after years apart allows us to influence students, faculty, and the community while sparking new conversations about Puerto Rico’s relationship with the US.”
To discover more about CENTRO and RSVP for upcoming exhibition events, visit centropr.hunter.cuny.edu.
Upcoming Events
Cafecito con…Quintín Rivera Toro & José Ortiz Pagán: Metaphors of the Diasporic Experience
October 10th at 6:00PM ET
In-person | FREE, RSVP required
Silberman School of Social Work – 2180 3rd Ave, New York, NY
Join Quintín Rivera Toro and José Ortiz Pagán as they explore their pieces: The Grass was Greener (2017), Untitled, from the series Ahi vamos (2007), La Boveda (2015), and Exit (2015) on display as part of the exhibition. Rivera Toro’s work explores the uncertainty of deciding to depart one’s home while pining for greener pastures. José Ortiz Pagán explores the idea of deciding to leave and the uncertainty and pitfalls that come with it.
Afternoon Tertulia: Máximo Colón & Mónica Felix on Photographing the Migration
November 16th 6:00PM ET
In-person | FREE, RSVP required
Silberman School of Social Work – 2180 3rd Ave, New York, NY
Join photographers Máximo Colón & Mónica Felix as they explore their photographs on display as part of the exhibition. Explore how these artists have documented the migrations past and present and how their photographs help define the diaspora.
Cafecito con… Laura Bravo: Curating Ida y Vuelta
December 14th 6:00PM ET
In-person | FREE, RSVP required
Silberman School of Social Work – 2180 3rd Ave, New York, NY
Join Professor Laura Bravo, curator of Ida y Vuelta for un cafecito exploring the origins and development of this exhibition. The exhibit, whose name translates to Arrivals and Departures: Migration Experiences in Contemporary Puerto Rican Art, features 19 Puerto Rican artists whose works respond to the experience of many Puerto Ricans living abroad.
Ida y Vuelta Closing Party
December 14th 7:00PM ET
In-person | FREE, RSVP required
Silberman School of Social Work – 2180 3rd Ave, New York, NY
Join us for an unforgettable evening of art and celebration at the Ida y Vuelta Exhibition Closing Party! As we bid farewell to this captivating journey, we invite you to be part of the culminating festivities. Immerse yourself in the rich tapestry of artistic narratives that have graced our gallery walls over these past months. The event promises a vibrant atmosphere filled with live music, refreshments, and the company of fellow art enthusiasts. See you there!
About the Curator
Laura Bravo López holds a Ph.D. in Art History from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. She is a Professor in the Art History Program, College of Humanities, at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus. She has been a grant-funded researcher in different institutions in the United States, Spain, the UK, and France. Bravo has curated more than fifteen exhibitions in museums and art galleries in Puerto Rico and Spain, giving more than fifty conferences and talks in art institutions in eight different countries and contributing to twenty books on art history and visual culture. In the subject of migration, she was the principal investigator for the project El arte puertorriqueño y los recientes flujos de la diáspora, funded by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research at the UPR, Río Piedras Campus, and co-editor of Counterstreaming: Measuring the Impact of Cultural Remittances, a special issue of Centro: Journal of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College (CUNY, 2016) and Geopolitics of the Difference: Discussions on Gender and Migration in Contemporary Visual Culture, a special issue of Art and Identity Politics Journal (Universidad de Murcia, 2018). She is coauthor for the book Con la casa a cuestas: Migración y patrimonio cultural en el mundo hispano (Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Sevilla, 2020).
About CENTRO
Founded in 1973 by a coalition of students, faculty, and activists, the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College (CENTRO) is the largest and oldest university-based research institute, library, and archive dedicated to the Puerto Rican experience in the United States. It provides support to students, scholars, artists, and members of the community at large across and beyond New York. Additionally, it produces original research, films, books, and educational tools and is the home of Centro Journal—the premiere academic journal of Puerto Rican Studies. CENTRO’s aim is to create actionable and accessible scholarship to strengthen, broaden, and reimagine the field of Puerto Rican studies.
CENTRO is a treasured institution where researchers, academics, teachers, students, genealogists, filmmakers, and the community at large find primary (historical documents) and secondary sources about the history and culture of the Puerto Rican diaspora. Most facilities, resources, and programs in the City University of New York (CUNY) system are limited to affiliates of the University. In the case of CENTRO’s Library and Archives, non-circulating materials and resources are open and available for use by the public at large, irrespective of CUNY affiliation. CENTRO’s programs and services are similarly open to the broader community in New York City and beyond. Since its inception, the institute has served as a site of encounter and collaboration between university affiliates and community members.
About Hunter East Harlem Gallery
Hunter East Harlem Gallery is a multidisciplinary space for art exhibitions and socially minded projects. Located on the ground floor of Hunter College’s Silberman School of Social Work at 119th Street and 3rd Avenue, the gallery presents exhibitions and public events that foster academic collaborations at Hunter College while addressing subjects relevant to the East Harlem community and greater New York City. The gallery seeks to initiate partnerships with publicly oriented organizations and focuses on showcasing artists who are engaging in social practice, public interventions, community projects, and alternative forms of public art. Since its inception in 2011, all exhibitions and programs at Hunter East Harlem Gallery are free and open to the public.