Opens October 15 with Group Show of 12 Prints by New York Dominican Artists
The CUNY DSI Gallery, the only exhibit space in New York City devoted to works of art by and about people of Dominican descent, will open Friday, October 15, with a group show titled “Manifestaciones” as its debut program. The gallery is located in the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute Archives and Library on the second floor of the North Academic Center on the campus of The City College of New York, 138th Street and Convent Avenue in Harlem.
“We opened the CUNY DSI Gallery to create a space that celebrates and showcases artists with a unique perspective on the Dominican experience in the United States, one that transcends the self-imposed boundaries of academic research,” explained Dr. Ramona Hernandez, Director of CUNY DSI.
The debut show, “Manifestaciones,” is a print portfolio of 12 never-before-seen pieces by Dominican York Proyecto GRAFICA, a print collective and collaborative project of Dominican artists who work and live in and around New York City. An opening reception for the exhibit will be held 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, October 15 in the gallery. It is open to the public, however, advance registration is required at www.cunydsigallery.eventbrite.com.
Two internationally renowned art historians have provided curatorial essays for the exhibit: E. Carmen Ramos, curator for Latino art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and independent Latin American art curator Graciela Kartofel. The exhibit is co-sponsored by the CCNY Art Department. It runs through December 21. Gallery hours will vary during the year and will be posted at www.ccny.cuny.edu/dsi.
The artists of Dominican York Proyecto GRAFICA are: Carlos Almonte, Pepe Coronado, René De Los Santos, Iliana Emilia Garcia, Scherezade Garcia, Alex Guerrero, Luanda Lozano, Miguel Luciano, Yunior Chiqui Mendoza, Reynaldo Garcia Pantaleón, Moses Ros-Suaréz, and Rider Ureña.
Future CUNY DSI Gallery exhibits will be selected by an art review committee composed of distinguished experts. Chaired by Professor Sarah Aponte, CUNY DSI Head Librarian, the committee includes: Dr. Ofelia Rodríguez of Broadway Housing Corporation and founder of Rio Gallery in Washington Heights; Professor Pamela Gillespie, Associate Dean and Chief Librarian, City College Libraries; Professor Harriet F. Senie, Director of Museum Studies, CCNY Art Department, and artist Tatiana Pagés, chief executive officer of Greencard Creative.
“While not restricted to artists of Dominican descent, we are especially interested in their work,” said Dr. Hernández in explaining the criteria for future exhibits. “We would like to share their complex and nuanced interpretation of the Dominican experience with as broad a public as possible.”
About CUNY Dominican Studies Institute
Founded in 1992 and housed at The City College of New York, the Dominican Studies Institute of the City University of New York (CUNY DSI) is the nation’s first, university-based research institute devoted to the study of people of Dominican descent in the United States and other parts of the world. CUNY DSI’s mission is to produce and disseminate research and scholarship about Dominicans and about the Dominican Republic itself. The Institute houses the Dominican Archives and the Dominican Library, the first and only institution in the United States collecting primary and secondary source material about Dominicans.
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Last Updated: 07/30/2015 12:06