El Museo del Barrio

Coordinates: 40°47′35″N 73°57′05″W / 40.793068°N 73.951378°W / 40.793068; -73.951378
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

El Museo del Barrio
M102, M116
Websiteelmuseo.org

El Museo del Barrio, often known simply as El Museo (the museum), is a

Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rican community in New York City. It is the oldest museum of the country dedicated to Latino art.[2]

Collection

The museum features an extensive permanent collection of over 6,500 pieces, and it encompasses more than 800 years of

Three Kings Day parade. Due to a lack of space prior to their 2009-2010 expansion
, the museum began to place some of their permanent collection online. This also served as a means of audience development.

Seeking to increase their audience and reach new audiences, El Museo has partnered with a number of organizations for joint exhibits including Nueva York (

Queens Museum of Art and the Studio Museum in Harlem).[5] Also, the museum is currently working on building its permanent collection by developing their holdings on Post-War art, adding more Modernist and Contemporary works, and fostering the strengths of graphics and Taíno holdings.[6]

History

Originally, the museum was a fire station during the

Ortíz quickly redeveloped this project as the creation of a community museum that would be dedicated to Puerto Rican art and culture, and named it El Museo del Barrio.[10]

In its founding documents,

Ortíz stated that "The cultural disenfranchisement I experience as a Puerto Rican has prompted me to seek a practical alternative to the orthodox museum, which fails to meet my needs for an authentic ethnic experience. To afford me and others the opportunity to establish living connections with our own culture, I founded El Museo del Barrio."[11] He served as director of the institution from June 1969 to Spring 1971.[12] The museum also sought to define itself as an educational institution and its original location was a public school classroom.[13]
Puerto Ricans continue to make up the majority of New York City's Latino population, which is growing. As a result of the museum's expansion, some artists, academics, and community activists who want to keep the museum true to its original purpose have grown frustrated.

In 1977, El Museo joined the Cultural Institutions Group (also known as CIGs) which helped increase and maintain its funding.[13] Its funding was frozen in the 1980s following a period of mismanagement. However it was able to successfully rebound and grow. A Frida Kahlo exhibit in 2002 brought more attendees than normally visited the museum annually and helped to transform its perception and led to the museum's first non-Puerto Rican Director.[14]

In 2009, El Museo celebrated its fortieth anniversary with public events, and the completion of an extensive renovation, which included an exhibition space for its permanent collection, a cafe, and a redesigned 4,500-square-foot courtyard.[15]

El Museo has grown from an alternative space to an established museum in East Harlem and has broadened its focus from exclusively Puerto Rican art, to encompass Latino, Caribbean, and Latin American art and culture.[16]

Location

From El Museo's origins in a

Museum Mile when it launched in 1978.[13] This location contributed to the museum's growth and audience development, increasing the market share of non Latino visitors to 40% of their audience.[13]

Musica de Camara, located nearby is a non-profit for promoting Latin classical musicians and was launched at the museum by Eva de la O., in 1979.[17]

Expansion

In the early 2000s the museum experienced a significant increase in visitors, however remained confined to one floor in its building, which it shares with a school and a number of private organizations. A plan was proposed for the Museum of the City of New York, across the street from El Museo, to relocate to the historic Tweed Courthouse by City Hall in Lower Manhattan.[18] El Museo would then have moved into the other museum's former building, dramatically expanding its available exhibition space.[citation needed] However, Mayor Michael Bloomberg decided to site the new New York City Department of Education in the Tweed Courthouse instead.[19]

After the failed relocation, El Museo opted to pursue a $15 million project to transform its outdoor courtyard into an open glass lobby, café and performance space, and to provide a suitable public "face" to the street on the model of the renovated Brooklyn Museum. It reopened in October 2009 to mostly positive reviews. The renovation was spearheaded by local architect Gruzen Samton and completed at a cost of $35 million and added a shop and restaurant.[20]

From 2018 to 2019, the Teatro, theater was restored. Its fairytale paintings were redone, the seats exchanged, and the stage modernized.[21] Two forgotten artistic chandeliers were hung from the ceiling again and the refurbishments and re-opening were celebrated with a concert by legend and El Barrio native Eddie Palmieri, on February 20, 2021.

Management

On February 15, 2013, it was announced that Margarita Aguilar left her post as the director.[22] Jorge Daniel Veneciano, the following director stepped down from the position in August 2016.[23] In 2017, Patrick Charpenel became the museum's executive director.[24] He has worked extensively in Mexico as well as internationally.[25]

See also

References

  1. ^ "EL MUSEO'S HISTORY | El Museo del Barrio New York". Elmuseo.org. July 30, 1970. Archived from the original on July 11, 2012. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  2. ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  3. ^ "History". El Museo. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  4. ^ "Nueva York". New-York Historical Society. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  5. ^ Coppola, John (August 26, 2012). "Cultural Crossroads". Miami Herald. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  6. ^ "Permanent Collection". El Museo. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  7. ^ "Timeline" (PDF). El Museo. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 4, 2016. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  8. ^ "Raphael Montañez Ortiz". Rutgers University. Archived from the original on March 15, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  9. ^ "Timeline" (PDF). El Museo. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 4, 2016. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  10. ^ Rosati, Lauren (2012). Alternative Histories: New York Art Spaces, 1960 to 2010. The MIT Press. p. 116.
  11. ^ Diehl, Travis (August 23, 2017). "Raphael Montañez Ortiz". Art in America. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  12. ^ Rosati, Lauren (2012). Alternative Histories: New York Art Spaces, 1960 to 2010. The MIT Press. p. 116.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "El Museo Del Barrio". New York Architecture Images. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  14. ^ Navarro, Mireya (November 8, 2002). "El Museo Is Thinking Outside the Barrio; Incoming Leader Inherits Debate Over Museum's Cultural Mission". The New York Times. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  15. ^ Rosati, Lauren (2012). Alternative Histories: New York Art Spaces, 1960 to 2010. The MIT Press. p. 116.
  16. ^ Rosati, Lauren (2012). Alternative Histories: New York Art Spaces, 1960 to 2010. The MIT Press. p. 116.
  17. ^ "Comite Noviembre 28th Anniversary - Mes de la Herencia Puertorriqueña" (PDF). www.comitenoviembre.org. p. 17. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 15, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
  18. ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  19. ^ "City Hall Academy". Gothamist. March 26, 2003. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
  20. ^ Mack, Joshua (October 29, 2009). "New York's El Museo del Barrio reopens following expansion". artreview.com. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  21. ^ "An Iconic New York City Theater Just Completed a Major Renovation". Architectural Digest. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  22. ^ "Amid Turmoil at Museo del Barrio, Its Director Steps Down". New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  23. ^ "Jorge Daniel Veneciano Steps Down as Executive Director of El Museo del Barrio". www.artforum.com. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  24. ^ "EL MUSEO DEL BARRIO ANNOUNCES THE APPOINTMENT OF PATRICK CHARPENEL AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR" (PDF). May 1, 2017. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  25. ^ Durón, Maximilíano (May 1, 2017). "El Museo del Barrio Names Patrick Charpenel Executive Director". ARTnews.com. Retrieved February 14, 2021.

External links

40°47′35″N 73°57′05″W / 40.793068°N 73.951378°W / 40.793068; -73.951378

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