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| Taller Boricua | |
|---|---|
| Name | Taller Boricua |
| Formation | 1970s |
| Founders | [see text] |
| Type | Arts collective |
| Headquarters | East Harlem, Manhattan, New York City |
| Location | 1780 Lexington Avenue (El Barrio) |
| Region served | Upper Manhattan, Puerto Rican diaspora, New York City |
| Fields | Visual art, printmaking, muralism, cultural preservation |
Taller Boricua is a Puerto Rican artist-run print workshop and community arts space based in East Harlem, Manhattan, New York City. It emerged from the intersection of Puerto Rican migration, Chicano and Black Arts movements, and community organizing during the 1960s and 1970s. The collective became a focal point for artists, cultural activists, and institutions seeking to foreground Puerto Rican and Latino visual culture within institutions such as the Bronx Museum of the Arts, El Museo del Barrio, and the Museum of Modern Art.
Founded amid alliances with movements like the Young Lords, the collective traces roots to artists influenced by figures such as Antonio Martorell, Rafael Tufiño, and Pedro Albizu Campos-era nationalists. Early collaborators included printmakers and community organizers connected to entities like El Museo del Barrio, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Puerto Rican Studies programs at City College of New York and Hunter College. The workshop developed alongside parallel organizations including Taller de Gráfica Popular, Taller 4 Rojo, the Taller Boricua founders worked with galleries and activists tied to Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños, ASPIRA, and the Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre. Exchanges occurred with artists associated with the Whitney Museum, the Guggenheim Museum, the New Museum, the Studio Museum in Harlem, and the Smithsonian Institution.
The collective’s trajectory intersected with broader cultural landmarks such as the Nuyorican Poets Cafe scene, the Young Lords Party actions, the civil rights actions around the Stonewall riots, and solidarity networks reaching to artists in Puerto Rico like Lorenzo Homar and in Mexico like Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros through printmaking legacies. Funding and partnerships came through foundations such as the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation, and collaborations with community media outlets including WBAI radio and El Diario.
Situated in El Barrio, the space occupies premises in East Harlem near landmarks including the Manhattan Avenue corridor, the Third Avenue El history, and the nearby Hispanic Society of America. The workshop shares neighborhood context with institutions such as La Marqueta, the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office Building, and the 125th Street cultural axis that includes the Apollo Theater and City College. Facilities have included silkscreen studios, letterpress equipment, etching presses, gallery rooms and classrooms used for partnerships with the New York Public Library, the Department of Cultural Affairs, and local public schools like PS/IS 123.
The physical site has hosted residencies and exchanges drawing artists from institutions such as Columbia University, New York University, Pratt Institute, Parsons School of Design, Rhode Island School of Design, and Cooper Union. Architectural and urban planning dialogues have connected the site to initiatives by the Municipal Art Society and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.
The collective’s mission emphasizes visual arts production, printmaking education, cultural identity, and community empowerment, aligning with curricular partners such as Lehman College, CUNY Graduate Center, and Borough of Manhattan Community College. Ongoing programs include print workshops, mural projects, artist residencies, youth apprenticeships, and public exhibitions coordinated with partners like El Museo del Barrio, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, the Queens Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, the Latino Arts Network, and Arts for Learning.
Educational initiatives have linked to after-school programs run by ASPIRA, YMCA, and community centers affiliated with Catholic Charities and the Archdiocese of New York. The collective has collaborated on public art contracts with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the Department of Cultural Affairs Percent for Art program, and neighborhood revitalization projects alongside Manhattan Community Board 11.
Artists associated with the workshop include printmakers, painters, muralists and graphic artists who have shown in venues such as MoMA PS1, El Museo del Barrio, the Whitney Biennial, and the Studio Museum in Harlem. Names affiliated through collaborations or exhibitions include Antonio Martorell, Rafael Tufiño, Marcos Dimas, Ramon Frade, Coco Fusco, Maria Irene Fornes (theater collaborations), Felipe Luciano (cultural activism), Ismael Rivera (musical intersections), and members of the Nuyorican movement such as Pedro Pietri and Miguel Piñero through cross-disciplinary events.
Exhibitions have traveled to institutions including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Museum of the American Latino initiatives, the Brooklyn Museum, the Queens Museum, the New-York Historical Society, the Museum of the City of New York, and international venues that include the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, Museo de Antropología in Mexico City, and the Centre Pompidou Exchange Programs.
The collective has influenced cultural policy and neighborhood identity in East Harlem, engaging with community stakeholders such as Community Board 11, local elected officials including New York City Council representatives, Manhattan Borough Presidents, and state legislators in Albany. Outreach programs have partnered with public schools, advocacy groups like Make the Road New York, the LatinoJustice PRLDEF, and labor unions representing cultural workers. Collaborations with health initiatives have linked to Mount Sinai Hospital outreach, community clinics, and public health campaigns.
Projects have addressed housing and displacement issues in coalition with groups such as the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board, Tenants & Neighbors, and community land trusts, while cultural programming intersected with festivals like the Puerto Rican Day Parade, Hispanic Heritage Month events, and the Latin Alternative Music Conference.
The workshop maintains archives of prints, posters, photographs, and ephemera documenting Puerto Rican and Nuyorican visual culture, with materials cataloged through partnerships with the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, the New York Public Library Digital Collections, and archival initiatives at the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art. Holdings reflect interactions with print traditions exemplified by Taller de Gráfica Popular, the Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, and independent presses such as Just Above Midtown (JAM) ephemera.
Researchers have accessed collections via institutional interfaces like the CUNY Academic Commons, WorldCat catalogs, and archival networks including the ArchivesSpace consortium and the Metropolitan New York Library Council.
The collective and affiliated artists have received recognition from municipal and national bodies including awards and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and fellowships from the Joan Mitchell Foundation and Guggenheim Foundation. Citations and honors have come from city proclamations by mayors of New York City, resolutions from the New York State Assembly, and community awards presented by El Museo del Barrio, the Hispanic Society of America, and neighborhood cultural councils.
Category:Arts organizations based in New York City