ART AND ACTIVISIM BETWEEN CHICAGO AND PUERTO RICO
Entre horizontes: art and activism between Chicago and Puerto Rico at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art examines the artistic genealogies and social justice movements that connect Puerto Rico with Chicago.
Featuring works by an intergenerational group of artists with ties to Chicago, the exhibition presents Puerto Rican painters who use printmaking techniques and approaches alongside artists who address social and political issues through their work.
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Beatriz Santiago Muñoz (b. 1972, San Juan, Puerto Rico; lives in San Juan), Safehouse Side A/ Side B (still), 2018. Two-channel video; 20 minutes. Collection Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Gift of John J. Drammis, Jr. and Ira Levy by exchange, 2022.122.
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Candida Alvarez (b. 1995, Brooklyn, NY; lives in Baroda, MI), Licking a Red Rose, 2020. Acrylic on linen; 80 1/4 × 68 1/8 in. (203.8 × 173 cm). Collection Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Gift of Katherine S. Schamberg by exchange, 2021.4. Photo: Tom Van Eynde, courtesy the artist and Monique Meloche Gallery.
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Ángel Otero (b. 1981 Santurce, Puerto Rico; lives in New York, NY), Exquisito, 2010. Oil paint and fabric collaged on canvas; 84 x 84 in. (213.36 x 213.36 cm). Campolieto Family Collection. Image courtesy of the artist.
The exhibition also centers Chicago as a city that for decades has championed national conversations on Puerto Rican self-determination and Latine issues, such as immigration and bilingual education. It features a selection of materials documenting the social movements and community organizations that advocated for the rights of underrepresented Latine communities, including historic photographs and other ephemera that tell the story of the anticolonial resistance and transcultural solidarities in the Puerto Rican community in Chicago. Starting with the Young Lords, which was founded in Chicago in the 1960s as part of broader national civil rights movements, Entre Horizontes includes documentation of the Division Street and Humboldt Park rebellions, the relentless advocacy for the liberation of Puerto Rican political prisoners, and the unprecedented activism of community members and grassroots organizations.
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Elizam Escobar (b. 1948, Ponce, Puerto Rico; d. 2021, San Juan, Puerto Rico), La Ficción, 1989. Oil over acrylic on canvas; framed: 50 x 75 1/8 x 1 3/4 in. (127 x 190.8 x 4.4 cm); 48 x 72 in. (121.92 x 182.88 cm). Private Collection, Puerto Rico. Photo: John Betancourt.
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Edra Soto (b. 1971, San Juan, Puerto Rico; lives in Chicago), Tropicalamerican, 2014. Inkjet prints on silk and red thread; five parts, each: 67 x 43 in.; installed dimensions variable. Collection Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Gift of Warren A. James in memory of Dr. Magdalena Bernat and Warren Alger James, 2021.10. Installation view, Elmhurst Art Museum Biennial: Chicago Statements, Elmhurst Art Museum, Dec 11, 2015–Feb 20, 2016. Photo: James Prinz Photography.
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Omar Velázquez (b. 1984, Isabela, Puerto Rico; lives in Chicago, IL and Puerto Rico), Caguama, 2020. Oil and acrylic on canvas; 84 1/4 × 72 1/2 in. (214 × 184.2 cm). Collection Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Gift of Marshall Field’s by exchange, 2021.3. © 2020 Omar Velázquez. Photo: Shelby Ragsdale, © MCA Chicago.
The title of the exhibition, Entre Horizontes (between horizons), draws on another point of connection between these two places. While geographically distinct, the horizon lines over the waters of Lake Michigan and the Caribbean appear as sites of memory and longing to Puerto Rican Chicagoans. By bridging these two horizons, the exhibition traces correspondences across not only visual art and social justice, but also place and identity.
Artists participating: Candida Alvarez, Elizam Escobar, Frank Espada, Rafael Ferrer, Carlos Flores, José Lerma, Ramón Miranda Beltrán, Nora Maité Nieves, Ángel Otero, nibia pastrana Santiago, Marisol Plard Narváez, Edra Soto, Arnaldo Roche Rabell, Beatriz Santiago Muñoz, Bibiana Suárez, Sebastián Vallejo and Omar Velázquez.
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Frank Espada, Tommy Jiménez, 1982. Exhibition copy; Overall: 20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.6 cm). Courtesy of the Frank Espada Archive, San Francisco.
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José Lerma (b. 1971, lives in Puerto Rico), Dorothy, 2023. Acrylic on burlap; 8 x 6 ft. Courtesy of the artist and Diablo Rosso.
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Arnaldo Roche Rabell (b. 1955, San Juan, Puerto Rico; d. 2018, San Juan), Isla Vacía, 1987. Oil on canvas; 57 1/16 x 77 9/16 in. (145 x 197 cm). Collection of the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico, Gift of Francis and Maud Duquella, 1988.
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