August 19, 2023–May 5, 2024
entre horizontes: Art and Activism Between Chicago and Puerto Rico 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.
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.
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.
Celebrate the opening of entre horizontes on August 19 at the MCA with events inspired by the art and exhibition. In the morning, join a conversation between the exhibition curator Carla Acevedo-Yates and writer and activist José López followed by a screening of the documentary Humboldt Park: Raíces de Resistencia. Then in the afternoon attend a performance from nibia pastrana santiago with Eduardo F. Rosario, and special snacks created by Puerto Rican Chef Natalia Boa Rosario are available througout the day. Learn more.
entre horizontes: Art and Activism Between Chicago and Puerto Rico is curated by Carla Acevedo-Yates, Marilyn and Larry Fields Curator, with Iris Colburn, Curatorial Associate. The exhibition is designed by SKETCH | Johann Wolfschoon, Panamá.
