Loisaida Inc.

Cocinando Justicia
2018-04-30 18:30 - 20:30 UTC | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Direct from Puerto Rico, Giovani Roberto, an organizer with Centro de Apoyo Mutuo – CAM (Center of Mutual Support), Caguas, will be discussing how its projects and others, are creating alternative solutions to meet the basic sustenance needs of the Puerto Rican people after Hurricane Maria. Other speakers include Melissa Fuster, Professor of Public Health Nutrition at Brooklyn College, and Huascar Robles, author/journalist/producer of Catatonia podcast.

Central Ethic
Through implementing CAM principles of “ayuda mutua y esfuerzo propio” (mutual help and self-effort) the process of creating a new, regenerative Puerto Rico and allowing a return of the island’s vitality. CAM principles function in contrast to the legacy of colonial policies which continue to eliminate public services and infrastructure, and compromise natural resources for the exclusive benefit of private interests. The ethic of ‘mutual help and self effort’ has proven effective in creating a viable, alternative solution or the people of Puerto Rico, as evidenced by the increasing interest of participants and volunteers received daily in service to the CAM.
Background & Growth
Centro de Apoyo Mutuo ~ Caguas, appeared 8 days after the passing of Hurricane Maria, occupying abandoned space, providing services such as meals, material resources, acupuncture and alternative therapies, and workshops to the public while receiving support from local community volunteers, and later from supporters outside the island.
Weeks after the Centro de Apoyo Mutuo started in Caguas, several groups and individuals across the island helped organize CAMs in their communities, following the call for collective action to island activists and progressive groups, resulting in 8 CAM’s throughout the main island, including 1 on the island of Vieques. Currently there are 8 CAMs, some with a peoples kitchen, some with agro-ecological projects, workshops, alternative community educational projects, and acupuncture and therapeutic spaces.

**Giovanni Roberto is a Puerto Rican social justice activist and organizer for the Center for Political, Educational and Cultural Development (CDPEC) based in Caguas, Puerto Rico. Roberto is a former student leader of the 2010-2011 mobilizations and strikes at the University of Puerto Rico.
Melissa Fuster is an assistant professor of Public Health Nutrition at the City University of New York Brooklyn College. Her current research addresses the sociopolitical and cultural factors affecting culinary and nutritional outcomes in the Hispanic Caribbean region and its transnational communities in the US. Previous to joining Brooklyn College, Prof. Fuster was a Provostial Faculty Fellow in Food Studies at New York University.

Fiestas de Cruz at Loisaida
2018-05-05 18:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Loisaida Inc. and its project The Plenatorium are pleased to host a performance and ritual stemming straight from the faith based history of Puerto Ricans in the Lower East Side. The “Feast of the Holy Cross” roughly translates into “Fiestas de Cruz” and members of the community have kept it alive from generation to generation through oral history. On these days during the month of May, many families, neighbors, friends and strangers would gather to recite a live rosary chant accompanied by Puerto Rican traditional plena sounds.
Musical Accompaniment / Quinto Sonó, Sammy Tanco, Nelly Tanco
Festival Coordinators / Maitreyi Villaman Matos, Yawo Pepe Flores, Bala Soto
Please RSVP as there is a limited capacity.

Dome Building Workshop
2018-05-06 14:00 - 16:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Dome Building Workshop
A project by: Matthew Mottel in collaboration with Loisaida Inc.
Sunday, May 6 from 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm (estimated time)

Overview:
The history of dome building on the LES goes back to when CHARAS built domes in collaboration with Buckminster Fuller in 1972/73. Syeus Mottel documented this effort in his photo-journalism book CHARAS THE IMPROBABLE DOME BUILDERS , first published in 1974 and now re published in 2017 by Song Cave Press & Pioneer Works.
Through a collaborative project between Loisaida Inc., La Plaza Cultural de Armando Perez and DIAP (Digital Intermedia MFA program at City College), artist and researcher Matthew Mottel (Syeus Mottel’s son) will build 2 geodesic domes (one at La Plaza and the other at the Loisaida Inc. Center’ courtyard) as an interactive art installation. In interviewing Carlos “Chino” Garcia as part of his research, Matthew was told that the domes CHARAS built functioned as both recreational activity spaces and as experimental examples of how to build disaster relief housing in non urban areas. The same functions apply now. The dome at La Plaza Cultura, will be seen from the street, with high visibility. This will bring people to the other dome in the courtyard and exhibition happening at Loisaida Center, which will feature a more detailed documentation of the original events of 1972-73.
This work highlights the achievements of CHARAS and hopefully expands the pressure on the NYC mayoral office to follow through on their promise to re-acquire El Bohio for the Loisaida community.
The week of the exhibition opening, many public performances, talks and workshops will transpire in both the Loisaida Center dome, and at La Plaza Cultural. These events will be influenced by the type of programming that happened during the 20+ years of events and exhibitions of El Bohio before being pushed out of its iconic and historic location on 9th Street, formerly known as P.S. 64.

Resources:
The Improbable Dome Builders
Matthew’s essay on the book.
The video that will be screened during the exhibition opening; CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH – Wednesday, May 9 at 6:00 pm

Schedule, Programming & Activities:

Saturday, May 5 at 6:00 pm – Archive exhibition of the 1972/73 CHARAS Geodesic Dome opens during Fiestas de Cruz at Loisaida Center.
Sunday, May 6 at 2:00 pm – Dome Building Workshop where participants will assist in the building of a 12′ geodesic dome. There will also be a special screening of archival footage from Bucky Fuller.
Wednesday, May 9 at 6:00 pm – Geodesic Domes unveiled with exhibition at Loisaida Center and La Plaza Cultural with performance by poet Edwin Torres.
Thursday, May 10 at 12:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center.
Friday, May 11 at 6:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center + Oral history project of the Lower East Side featuring interview with Chino Garcia by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, with documentary screening of Matthew Mottel’s video CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH at 6:00 pm.
Saturday, May 12 at 12:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center + performances in the afternoon thru evening at La plaza Cultural and Loisaida Center Courtyard.

CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH: Reception + Performances
2018-05-09 18:00 - 20:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH: Reception + Performances

A project by: Matthew Mottel in collaboration with Loisaida Inc., La Plaza Cultural de Armando Perez and DIAP (Digital Intermedia MFA program at City College

Overview:
The history of dome building on the LES goes back to when CHARAS built domes in collaboration with Buckminster Fuller in 1972/73. Syeus Mottel documented this effort in his photo-journalism book CHARAS THE IMPROBABLE DOME BUILDERS , first published in 1974 and now re published in 2017 by Song Cave Press & Pioneer Works.
Through a collaborative project between Loisaida Inc., La Plaza Cultural de Armando Perez and DIAP (Digital Intermedia MFA program at City College), artist and researcher Matthew Mottel (Syeus Mottel’s son) will build 2 geodesic domes (one at La Plaza and the other at the Loisaida Inc. Center’ courtyard) as an interactive art installation. In interviewing Carlos “Chino” Garcia as part of his research, Matthew was told that the domes CHARAS built functioned as both recreational activity spaces and as experimental examples of how to build disaster relief housing in non urban areas. The same functions apply now. The dome at La Plaza Cultura, will be seen from the street, with high visibility. This will bring people to the other dome in the courtyard and exhibition happening at Loisaida Center, which will feature a more detailed documentation of the original events of 1972-73.
This work highlights the achievements of CHARAS and hopefully expands the pressure on the NYC mayoral office to follow through on their promise to re-acquire El Bohio for the Loisaida community.
The week of the exhibition opening, many public performances, talks and workshops will transpire in both the Loisaida Center dome, and at La Plaza Cultural. These events will be influenced by the type of programming that happened during the 20+ years of events and exhibitions of El Bohio before being pushed out of its iconic and historic location on 9th Street, formerly known as P.S. 64.

Resources:
CHARAS The Improbable Dome Builders (((THE FUTURE IN ACTION)))
Through the lens of avant-garde architectural theory, the CHARAS Lower East side community group and Buckminster Fuller’s assistant, Michael Ben Eli construct a geodesic dome on an unused plot of land in the shadow of the Manhattan bridge in 1972-1973. The CHARAS members built the geodesic dome to control their own destiny.
CHARAS: The Improbable Dome Builders resonates in 2018. Ever present are the needs of affordable housing, the occupation of public/unused space for civic use, and the participation of communities to take self determined action when governmental institutions forgo their public duty.
CHARAS THE IMPROBABLE DOME BUILDERS: (((THE FUTURE IN ACTION) produced by Matthew Mottel includes archival interviews and photography from 1972/73 by Syeus Mottel with CHARAS members Chino Garcia and Karen Becker. In October 2017, Sal Becker and Chino Garcia, return to the dome construction site on the Lower East Side to reflect on their achievements and speak about the purpose of their dome building activity.
Matthew Mottel’s essay on the book.
The video that will be screened during the exhibition opening; CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH – Wednesday, May 9 at 6:00 pm

Schedule, Programming & Activities:

Saturday, May 5 at 6:00 pm – Archive exhibition of the 1972/73 CHARAS Geodesic Dome opens during Fiestas de Cruz at Loisaida Center.
Sunday, May 6 at 2:00 pm – Dome Building Workshop where participants will assist in the building of a 12′ geodesic dome. There will also be a special screening of archival footage from Bucky Fuller.
Wednesday, May 9 at 6:00 pm – Geodesic Domes unveiled with exhibition at Loisaida Center and La Plaza Cultural with performance by poet Edwin Torres.
Thursday, May 10 at 12:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center.
Friday, May 11 at 6:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center + Oral history project of the Lower East Side featuring interview with Chino Garcia by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, with documentary screening of Matthew Mottel’s video CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH at 6:00 pm.
Saturday, May 12 at 12:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center + performances in the afternoon thru evening at La plaza Cultural and Loisaida Center Courtyard.

CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH
2018-05-09 18:00 - 2018-05-11 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH

A project by: Matthew Mottel in collaboration with Loisaida Inc., La Plaza Cultural de Armando Perez and DIAP (Digital Intermedia MFA program at City College

Overview:
The history of dome building on the LES goes back to when CHARAS built domes in collaboration with Buckminster Fuller in 1972/73. Syeus Mottel documented this effort in his photo-journalism book CHARAS THE IMPROBABLE DOME BUILDERS , first published in 1974 and now re published in 2017 by Song Cave Press & Pioneer Works.
Through a collaborative project between Loisaida Inc., La Plaza Cultural de Armando Perez and DIAP (Digital Intermedia MFA program at City College), artist and researcher Matthew Mottel (Syeus Mottel’s son) will build 2 geodesic domes (one at La Plaza and the other at the Loisaida Inc. Center’ courtyard) as an interactive art installation. In interviewing Carlos “Chino” Garcia as part of his research, Matthew was told that the domes CHARAS built functioned as both recreational activity spaces and as experimental examples of how to build disaster relief housing in non urban areas. The same functions apply now. The dome at La Plaza Cultura, will be seen from the street, with high visibility. This will bring people to the other dome in the courtyard and exhibition happening at Loisaida Center, which will feature a more detailed documentation of the original events of 1972-73.
This work highlights the achievements of CHARAS and hopefully expands the pressure on the NYC mayoral office to follow through on their promise to re-acquire El Bohio for the Loisaida community.
The week of the exhibition opening, many public performances, talks and workshops will transpire in both the Loisaida Center dome, and at La Plaza Cultural. These events will be influenced by the type of programming that happened during the 20+ years of events and exhibitions of El Bohio before being pushed out of its iconic and historic location on 9th Street, formerly known as P.S. 64.

Resources:
CHARAS The Improbable Dome Builders (((THE FUTURE IN ACTION)))
Through the lens of avant-garde architectural theory, the CHARAS Lower East side community group and Buckminster Fuller’s assistant, Michael Ben Eli construct a geodesic dome on an unused plot of land in the shadow of the Manhattan bridge in 1972-1973. The CHARAS members built the geodesic dome to control their own destiny.
CHARAS: The Improbable Dome Builders resonates in 2018. Ever present are the needs of affordable housing, the occupation of public/unused space for civic use, and the participation of communities to take self determined action when governmental institutions forgo their public duty.
CHARAS THE IMPROBABLE DOME BUILDERS: (((THE FUTURE IN ACTION) produced by Matthew Mottel includes archival interviews and photography from 1972/73 by Syeus Mottel with CHARAS members Chino Garcia and Karen Becker. In October 2017, Sal Becker and Chino Garcia, return to the dome construction site on the Lower East Side to reflect on their achievements and speak about the purpose of their dome building activity.
Matthew Mottel’s essay on the book.
The video that will be screened during the exhibition opening; CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH – Wednesday, May 9 at 6:00 pm

Schedule, Programming & Activities:

Saturday, May 5 at 6:00 pm – Archive exhibition of the 1972/73 CHARAS Geodesic Dome opens during Fiestas de Cruz at Loisaida Center.
Sunday, May 6 at 2:00 pm – Dome Building Workshop where participants will assist in the building of a 12′ geodesic dome. There will also be a special screening of archival footage from Bucky Fuller.
Wednesday, May 9 at 6:00 pm – Geodesic Domes unveiled with exhibition at Loisaida Center and La Plaza Cultural with performance by poet Edwin Torres.
Thursday, May 10 at 12:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center.
Friday, May 11 at 6:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center + Oral history project of the Lower East Side featuring interview with Chino Garcia by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, with documentary screening of Matthew Mottel’s video CHARAS IS ALIVE ON SPACESHIP EARTH at 6:00 pm.
Saturday, May 12 at 12:00 pm – Exhibition hours at Loisaida Center + performances in the afternoon thru evening at La plaza Cultural and Loisaida Center Courtyard.

Chino Garcia Oral History and Screening of CHARAS is Alive on Spaceship Earth
2018-05-11 18:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Chino Garcia Oral History and Screening of CHARAS is Alive on Spaceship Earth
Friday, May 11, 6:00pm
Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 E 9th Street

presented as part of Lower East Side History Month

GVSHP‘s Oral History Project helps to preserve memories of the Village and East Village. Our newest release features Carlos “Chino” Garcia, co-founder of the East Village’s CHARAS El Bohio Cultural and Community Center.
Chino will join us in conversation with Bonnie Sue Stein, Executive and Artistic Director of GOH Productions. They will discuss Chino’s life and activism, from youth and migrant communities in the 1950s to the education-focused Real Great Society, the founding of CHARAS in the 1970s, and more.
CHARAS first built domes in collaboration with Buckminster Fuller in 1972. Artist and scholar Matthew Mottel will present his short documentary about CHARAS based on archival footage ofSeyus Mottel (his father), working on the Improbable Dome Builders.
This event is fully accessible.
Free. Reservations Required.

Register here.

Ecological City
2018-05-12 11:00 - 17:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
ECOLOGICAL CITY PROCESSION
SATURDAY MAY 12, 2018 (rain date May 13)
#DANCERS, #MODELS, #ARTISTS, #PERFORMERS, #BODYPAINTERS #PUPPETEERS #ACTIVISTS #PHOTOGRAPHERS #VOLUNTEERS

PLEASE SHARE and invite friends to join and VOLUNTEER FOR #ECOLOGICALCITY – this is not a parade to watch but a transformational experience – become a garden, river and climate solution spirit – help as a marshal- many roles. Experience the ECOLOGICAL URBAN PILGRIMAGE FROM THE GARDENS TO THE RIVER on the LES of NYC – not to be missed!

Earth Celebrations’ ECOLOGICAL CITY, a climate action, ecological urban pilgrimage and performance art event – features a spectacular 6 hour procession featuring visual art, giant puppets and costumes with 20 site performances of dance, music, theater and poetry celebrating sustainability solutions throughout the community gardens, neighborhood and East River Park waterfront on the Lower East Side of New York City.
VOLUNTEER: Sign up to wear spectacular costumes – direct puppets – marshal procession
NEEDED: MAKE-UP/BODY PAINTERS, ARTISTS, DANCERS, PERFORMERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS
SIGN UP FOR A ROLE – CONTACT:
FB Message: https://www.facebook.com/EarthCelebrations/
EMAIL: mail@earthcelebrations.com
SIGN UP: http://earthcelebrations.com/volunteer-ecological-city-sign/
MORE INFO: http://earthcelebrations.com/ecological-city-project/
FB EVENT SHARE: https://www.facebook.com/events/856985337794345/

Earth Celebrations’ ECOLOGICAL CITY in partnership with Loisaida Center Inc., LUNGS-Loisaida United Neighborhood Gardens and over 50 partner organizations and groups including NYC Community Garden District, Green Map, GOLES (Good Old Lower East Side-Housing/Resiliency), LES Ready!, Lower East Side Girls Club, Lower East Side Ecology, East Village Community Coalition, East River Park Coalition, Solar One, Waterfront Alliance, University Settlement, Earth School (PS364), Sixth Street Community Center, Arts Loisaida, MOS Collective, Gaia Institute, East 4th Street Block Association, Times Up, Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space, FAB (Fourth Street Arts Block Association), Theatre for the New City, Hunter College-School of Community Organizing and New York University. Numerous groups and residents throughout the neighborhood are invited to join.

This program is made possible with support from Fund for the City of New York, New York Community Trust, Con Edison, Howard Bayne Fund, private foundations, individuals and
Creative Engagement / Creative Learning, supported by the New York CityDepartment of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council

Last One Standing - Premier *SOLD OUT*
2018-05-25 18:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
DESCRIPTION

Loisaida Inc., producers of the annual Loisaida Festival, are pleased to host the significant event in honor of one of the most iconic pillars of the Puerto Rican, Nuyorican, and Latinx community, Adela Fargas, founder of the restaurant Casa Adela.
Filmakers Gary Cruz and William Rosario from Yagrumo Productions documented Adela’s life for the last four years culminating in their latest documentary “Last One Standing”. They have immortalized the trajectory of this beloved Loisaida Icon.
The reception will feature a special performance from local musician and organizer, David Soto as Daso Y El Grupo Cemi and an acoustic set by Juan Pagan.
Doors open at 6:30pm and the screening begins promptly at 7:45pm.

DATE AND TIME

Fri, May 25, 2018
6:30 PM – 10:00 PM EDT
Add to Calendar

LOCATION

710 E 9th St
710 East 9th Street
New York, NY 10009

Lying Lydia - Open Reading
2018-07-22 19:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Loisaida Inc. and Caborca Theatre present:
Lying Lydia
Open Reading

New work by the Loisaida Inc. Center’s 2014 artists in residence –CABORCA.
Written and directed by Javier Antonio González and featuring Laura Butler Rivera, Yaremis Félix, and Tania Molina, Lying Lydia is a piercing look at our civilization’s targeting of women, colonies, and the truth. In the mold of Churchill and Fornes, Lying Lydia is a mysterious and darkly funny chamber work featuring masterful performances from some of Caborca’s veteran actors, as well as an original soundscape by Keenan Hurley.

Truth may have died in the disaster. Two women are confined and forced to paint the landscape that may have once been. One of them is Margaret. The other is Lying Lydia, so called because everything she says is a lie. How do you know? Listen, you can hear her thinking. Like they said you would.
LOISAIDA INC. CENTER
710 E 9th Street, Manhattan
Free Admission
7pm

About Caborca:
Hailing from Puerto Rico, US America and beyond, Caborca makes sprawling, adventurous works in theatre and film. Combining epic auteurship with a tuned ensemble of actors and a flux of collaborators, we bridge language, background and media, inviting our audience, guest artists and members alike, to delve into the pleasure of seeing anew.
Caborca steals its name from the novel The Savage Detectives, by Roberto Bolaño, in which a magazine of the same name is the official organ of visceral realism.

Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, event or presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in his personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc. its affiliates or staff.

L.E.S. (Loisaida Elders & Seniors) Day
2018-08-06 12:00 - 16:30 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Fidelis Care

Date: Monday, August 6 from 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Cost: Free

Where: Loisaida Inc. – 710 East 9th Street and Avenue C

Live Music, Health & Wellness Info, Workshops and Light Snacks for our “Abuelitos”.
This first Monday promises to be a lot of fun! With musical instrument making workshops, live music and snacks, make sure your “Abuelitos” do not miss our monthly celebration.

Sponsored by:

Garbagia Three Green Suns - Summer Program
2018-08-28 16:00 - 2018-09-15 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
DESCRIPTION
Loisaida is proud to bring our community an ongoing summer program highlighting and revitalizing the migrant experience, our neighborhood’s historical inventiveness, and ecological resilience. Inspired by local artist and activist, Rolando Politi, whose iconic repurposed and recycled sculptures pepper community gardens throughout Loisaida, the program uses place-based pedagogy and recycled materials to equip youth and residents in using creative strategies to address the city’s urgent issues.

Join Garbagia’s third year open atelier summer program for collaborative and individual projects in textiles, gleaning, sculpture and painting Join the program to transform garbage into beautiful art, then showcase your work with a final community celebration at the historical La Plaza Cultural community Garden!

OPEN WORKSHOPS @ The Loisaida Inc. Center
August 28 – 31 / 4-9PM / COSTUMES / Teaching Artist: Daniela Fabrizi
September 3 – 7 / 4-9PM / SCULPTURE / Teaching Artist: Daniel Polnau
September 10 – 14 / 4-9PM / PERFORMANCE / Teaching Artist: Marta V
Click here to register!
SHOW: SATURDAY, SEPT 15th, 2018 @ 5pm – La Plaza Cultural Community Garden (9th Street and Ave C Southwest corner)
RAIN DATE: SUNDAY, SEPT 16th, 2018 @ 5pm
BBQ / Creature Pasarela “Fashion Show” /
Market ‘Hallucination Station’
(2nd hand & Upcycled Pieces)
From 2pm – 7pm
@ La Plaza Cultural, 9th St w/ Ave C, Lower East Side
Contact Daniela Fabrizi for more information: dani.fabrizi@gmail.com

This program is funded by the New York City Council’s Cultural Immigrant Initiative, in partnership with the New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs.

Garbagia Three Green Suns - Summer Program
2018-08-28 16:00 - 2018-09-15 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Rolando Politi’s Garbagia: The Three Green Suns.
Garbagia projects are part of Loisaida Summer Programs
Loisaida is proud to bring our community an ongoing summer program highlighting and revitalizing the migrant experience, our neighborhood’s historical inventiveness, and ecological resilience. Inspired by local artist and activist, Rolando Politi, whose iconic repurposed and recycled sculptures pepper community gardens throughout Loisaida, the program uses place-based pedagogy and recycled materials to equip youth and residents in using creative strategies to address the city’s urgent issues.
This program is funded by the New York City Council’s Cultural Immigrant Initiative.

Our third year open atelier summer program for collaborative and individual projects in textiles, gleaning, sculpture and painting was a resounding success. Community members joined the program to transform garbage into beautiful art, then showcase their work with a final community celebration at the historic Plaza Cultural community garden all while in keeping with neighborhood tradition.

Learn more about Rolando Politi’s Garbagia: The Three Green Suns.

This program is funded by the New York City Council’s Cultural Immigrant Initiative, in partnership with the New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs.

L.E.S. (Loisaida Elders & Seniors) Day
2018-09-10 12:00 - 16:30 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Fidelis Care

Date: Monday, September 10 from 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm
(In lieu of Labor Day)
Cost: Free

Where: Loisaida Inc. – 710 East 9th Street and Avenue C

Live Music, Health & Wellness Info, Workshops and Light Snacks for our Super Adults.
This first Monday promises to be a lot of fun! With musical instrument making workshops, live music and snacks, make sure your abuelos do not miss our monthly celebration.

Sponsored by:

ACCIONES
2018-09-20 18:00 - 2018-10-19 20:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
ACCIONES QUE LEVANTAN A PUERTO RICO (ACCIONES), IS THE ONLY STUDENT ART EXHIBIT OF ITS KIND, FEATURING 80 ORIGINAL PAINTINGS
FROM PUERTO RICAN STUDENTS IN THE WAKE OF HURRICANE MARIA’S DEVASTATING PATH THROUGH THE ISLAND OF PUERTO RICO.

The CHICAS by Alejandra Foundation (CHICAS Foundation), a leading social movement and non-profit organization against bullying and social injustice in Puerto Rico, announced that student art exhibit, Acciones que levantan a Puerto Rico (Actions that lift Puerto Rico), ACCIONES, will open in New York, September 20, 2018, to mark the first year anniversary of the devastating path of Hurricane Maria through the Caribbean island. ACCIONES is the only hurricane-themed student art exhibit of its kind.
Featuring original works by Puerto Rican students, from public and private schools, the two-part New York presentation of ACCIONES will be available at The Loisaida Center, September 20 through October 19; followed by the second part of the collection, which will be presented at the Queens College Arts Center, starting on October 4.
“The collection communicates a profound sense of hope for the future, as well as, its serves as a poignant reminder of the long road ahead to help Puerto Rico fully recover from the storm’s devastation. Acciones also reveals the values that best represent the people of Puerto Rico; such as service, family, empathy, solidarity, hospitality, culture, love of nature and resiliency,” expressed Frances I. Ryan, executive director of the CHICAS Foundation.
“Unveiling the exhibit in New York as we mark the first-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria, is a fitting gesture of appreciation to all New Yorkers, especially to the Puerto Rican community, which immediately galvanized to provide humanitarian support to victims in the aftermath of
the hurricane,” the CHICAS executive continued saying.
As one of the leading Puerto Rican community and cultural organizations in New York, The Loisaida Center, which in partnership with its umbrella organization, Acacia Network, has been at the center of New York’s humanitarian efforts to help Puerto Rico victims in the wake of Hurricane Maria. “Having ACCIONES at The Loisaida Center, is also our way saying thank you,” Ryan said, adding that the presentation at Queens College provides a different, yet very important academic setting, consistent with the student art exhibit.
Immediately after the passing of Hurricane Maria, the CHICAS Foundation participated in 200 humanitarian missions around the island. Also, in coordination with the Visual Arts Program of the Puerto Rico Department of Education, CHICAS hosted, Acciones, an island wide contest for
students, grades K-12, from public and private schools.

Despite dire conditions, nearly 100{d189f1124ffa6975f5923217354196c41f30852329af055ade71c436dc0b2403} of the island still in the dark, without water, telecommunications or access to roads, an astounding 630 original works were submitted to participate in the Acciones art contest.

A panel of artists, art teachers and community leaders selected 80 paintings that became the exhibit’s official selection The CHICAS Foundation envisioned the hurricane-themed art initiative as an important communication forum for Puerto Rican students, allowing them to express their life changing experiences and begin to heal through art. Many teachers participated in the art contest to facilitate communication with students as they returned to school after the hurricane.

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

Post-Cuban Cabaret with Omar Pérez at the Loisaida Center
2018-10-13 09:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
DESCRIPTION

Cuban artist Omar Pérez, visiting from Havana, invites performers and community members to join him in the creation of the Post-Cuban Cabaret, an intensive workshop culminating in an evening performance. Workshop participants will do theatre exercises, explore themes in multiple forms (music, poetry, dance), and go through improvisational situations. Omar Pérez envisions the manifestation of different cultural traditions and some focus on themes related to “island” – sea, water, Cuba, Latin and Caribbean culture, clichés, neighborhoods, etc. In the evening, the workshop participants perform material that has emerged during the day. All the arts and skills of the troupe members are integrated into the performance, which continues to be based on improvisational principles.
Workshop: 9:30 am to 7:00 pm
Perfomance: 8:00 pm
Omar Pérez: “The Cabaret was created in Havana more than 10 years ago by contemporary dancer and choreographer Sandra Ramy and myself in order to facilitate improvisation and interaction between “artists” of various kinds: dancers, of course, actors, poets and musicians but also designers, painters, rappers, amateurs…whoever was willing to go through the experience of an ad hoc workshop in order to build a one-night show, a one timer”.
BIO: The son of revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara, poet, editor, and translator Omar Pérez was born and raised in Havana. He earned a degree in English at the University of Havana and studied Italian at the Universitá per Straniere di Siena. He has worked as a journalist for El Caimán Barbudo, and as an editor for the magazine La naranja dulce. A former member of the Cuban intellectual group Paideia, he edited the poetry magazine Mantisfrom 1994 to 1996.
Ordained as a Zen Buddhist monk, Pérez composes poems that engage languages, Zen, and political and cultural transcendence. His poetry collections include Lingua Franca (2010), Oíste hablar del gato de pelea?(1999, translated as Did You Hear about the Fighting Cat? by Kristin Dykstra, 2010), and Algo de lo Sagrado (1996, translated as Something of the Sacred by Kristin Dykstra and Robert Tejada, 2007). His translations include Italian-Cuban novelist Alba de Céspedes’s Nadie vuelve atrás(2003) and Shakespeare’s As You Like It (as Como Les Guste, 2000).
Intensely interested in the ways in which poetry overlays experience, Perez noted in an interview with Jacket magazine that “the verse, the poem, even the rhyme, the melody of poetry are the tip of the iceberg, they are just one familiar aspect of a huge reality which we call consciousness […] Poetry is a natural function, like god, or DNA, or rain. The fact that we can give notice of it does not mean that we make it.”
He received Cuba’s Nicolás Guillén Prize for Poetry for Crítica de la Razón Puta (2009) as well as its National Critics’ Prize for his essay collection La perseverancia de un hombre oscuro (2000). His work has also been featured in the anthology The Whole Island: Six Decades of Cuban Poetry, A Bilingual Anthology (2009). He lives in Havana.

Book Talk: Counter Institution by Nandini Bagchee
2018-11-28 18:30 - 20:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Book Talk: Counter Institution by Nandini Bagchee
Wednesday, November 28, 6:30pm
Loisaida Center, 710 E 9th St
Counterinstitution: Activist Estates of the Lower East Side, examines the open-ended histories of activism in the Lower East Side by looking at the spaces used by activists- storefronts, gardens and offices to bring forth the hidden dimensions of these organizational spaces through a collaging together of architectural drawings techniques with archival research, photography and writing. This book examines three re-purposed buildings on the Lower East Side that have been used by activists to launch actions over the past forty years. The Peace Pentagon was the headquarters of the anti-war movement, El Bohio was a metaphoric “hut” that envisioned the Puerto Rican Community as a steward of the environment, and ABC No Rio, a name appropriated from a storefront sign with missing letters, was a catchy punk name that appealed to the anarchistic sensibility of the artists that ran a storefront gallery in a run-down tenement. The “activist estates” explored in this book represents both a conceptual and a literal struggle to create a space for civic action in a city that is built upon real estate speculation.
A book talk by author Nandini Bagchee will be followed by a discussion with Dr. Gregory Sholette. Nandini Bagchee is an Associate Professor of Architecture and History at City College New York and a Principal at Bagchee Architects. Greg Sholette is an artist, activist and author of Delirium and Resistance: Art, Activism & the Crisis of Capitalism (Pluto Press 2017) and Dark Matter: Art and Politics in an Age of Enterprise Culture (Pluto Press, 2011). At this event we will also launch a call for participation for an exhibition planned at the Loisaida Center titled, “Activist Estates: An Alternate History of Real Estate in Loisaida”.
This exhibition designed and curated by Nandini Bagchee in collaboration with Loisaida Center will be mounted in May 2019 to celebrate the history of space-based activism in the Lower East Side. Through timelines, photographs, artifacts, film and architectural models- the exhibit will invite visitors to share their own stories and images to fill in the blanks or simply re-interpret the material within the show. Community workshops and envisioning sessions will open new discussions of the future of community-
controlled space.
Co-Sponsored by the Loisaida Center and GVSHP
This event is fully accessible.

g e o d e s i c l i n g u i x ; Charas as Infinite Thought Object
2019-01-09 08:00 - 17:00 | The Poetry Club, 131 E. 10th Street, New York, NY, 10003, United States
Matthew Mottel & Edwin Torres
EVENT DETAILS:TICKETSWednesday, January 9, 2019, 8:00 pm

g e o d e s i c l i n g u i x ;
Charas as Infinite Thought Object
The history of dome building on the Lower East Side goes back to when CHARAS built domes in collaboration with Buckminster Fuller in 1972/73. Syeus Mottel documented this effort in his photojournalism book CHARAS; THE IMPROBABLE DOME BUILDERS, first published in 1973 and now re-published in 2018 by Song Cave Press & Pioneer Works.
On 1.9.19, The Poetry Project, will stage a performative action between artist, and researcher Matthew Mottel and poet Edwin Torres. Torres has been an active member of the Loisaida community since the 90’s, where he’s performed his ‘lingualisualist’ poetics, rooted in sight and sound, at many iconic venues. Mottel, has been a member of the experimental arts community of New York City since the late 1990’s.
In interviewing Chino Garcia (co-founder of CHARAS), Matthew was told that one of the domes CHARAS built in the 1970’s was portable and used as sites for experimental performance. In this spirit,Mottel and Torres will perform in and around a Geodesic Dome built inside the Poetry Project.
Mottel will screen a documentary video on the history of CHARAS’s dome building activity. And Torres will perform from his recent book, “XOETEOX: THE INFINITE WORD OBJECT” (Wave Books) within a sonically & visually-charged geodesic environment.
As the finale of the evening, the two will collaborate in and around the dome. This event will further expand the narrative of CHARAS’s original dome actions, to pair with contemporary performance and poetics, and to champion new forms with new content. This collaboration was facilitated by the Loisaida Center, who introduced the artists and hosted Mottel’s exhibition ‘Charas is alive on Spaceship Earth’ in May – June 2018.

MATTHEW MOTTEL

Matthew Mottel (born 1981, New York, NY) is an artist, performer and writer. Matthew researches political and cultural histories to ameliorate the relationships between archival historical documents and their contemporary context. These investigations often are in the form of sculpture, intermedia art installation and performance; creating unique environments for archival media to exist within. Matthew was an Artist In Residence At Issue Project Room in 2010 and an LMCC Swing Space Recipient in 2011. He has presented work at the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Victoria & Albert Museum, London; The Kitchen, New York; Deitch Projects, New York; All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival; London and Moers Music, Germany.
He received in 2003, a B.A at SUNY New Paltz, his degree in Political & Cultural Studies. He presented his thesis exhibition towards an M.F.A. at City College’s Digital Intermedia Art Practice program in 2018 with graduation in 2019.

EDWIN TORRES

Edwin Torres is a NYC native whose books include, XoeteoX: the infinite word object (Wave Books), Ameriscopia (University of Arizona Press), and The PoPedology of an Ambient Language (Atelos Books). Anthologies include: American Poets in the 21st Century: Poetics of Social Engagement, Who Will Speak For America, Angels of the Americlypse: New Latin@ Writing, and Aloud; Voices From The Nuyorican Poets Café. Recent collaborations include; Sowndhauz-an electro-lingo duo with Matt Harle, Poex-a collection of sound pieces created with Stephen Vitiello, and Resurrection-a site-specific installation performance with Julie Carr. He is editor of the forthcoming anthology from Counterpath Press entitled, The Body In Language: An Anthology.

Ecological City: Climate Solutions Project -Planning Meeting
2019-02-06 18:30 - 20:30 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Description
2018 Loisaida, Inc. Artist in Residence: Ecological City is planning its yearly neighborhood wide Procession for Climate Solutions. Come to the meeting and learn how to get involved
Share ideas, brainstorm and and collaborate co-creating the Ecological City: Procession for Climate Solutions at the ECOLOGICAL CITY – PLANNING MEETING
Find out how to participate in Ecological Arts Workshops from March 2- May 8 every Wednesday 6-9pm and Saturday 12-4pm creating spectacular giant puppets, costumes and performances exploring local sustainability sites and climate solution initiatives. Workshop location to be announced.
Groups and organizations are invited to create groups arts projects.
Visual arts and performance projects created through the workshops are presented in the culminating Ecological City: Procession for Climate Solutions on Saturday May 11, 2019 with 20 sites performances celebrating climate solutions and ecological sustainability initiatives throughout community gardens, neighborhood and East River Park waterfront on the Lower East Side.
Space is limited. Registration does not guarantee admission, which will be on a first-come first-served basis, with priority given to those who register.
Pictured: Ecological City contingent at the 2018 Loisaida Festival.

Agroecology & Food Sustainability
2019-03-30 18:30 - 20:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Simultaneous events at Loisaida Inc. Center and :Pública, a cultural space in Santurce, Puerto Rico; will explore the perceived tension between the traditional and the 21st century methods of harvesting and preparation as it relates to all things FOOD. Themes and topics will include: growing ingredients, recipes, colonization and agriculture, farming and imported food, where traditional cuisine comes from and what it means, and where and how Puerto Rican food can be found and prepared locally – both in the Lower East Side and in Santurce, Puerto Rico.
Space is limited, please RSVP here.
Presented as part of the Loisaida Inc. Center AIR Program. Lead by resident artist, Jocelyn Bonadio de Freitas.

@ Loisaida Inc. Center
Speakers: Tara Rodriguez-Besosa, Jocelyn Bonadio-de Freitas
Food by: Tara Rodriguez-Besosa (Asopao – Puerto Rican Stew))
Music/Sound Collage by: Jocelyn Bonadio-de Freitas
@ Pública
Speaker: Ian Pagan, Natalia Vallejo
Food by: Natalia Vallejo (Asopao – Puerto Rican Stew)
Program:

Doors Open at 6:00 pm
Event starts at 6:30 pm and ends at 8:00 pm EST
Rundown
6:30-6:45: Introduction and explanation of event by Jocelyn Bonadio-de Freitas
6:45-7:30: Talk/Sharing from Tara, Ian, Natalia including explanation of “asopao” (Puerto Rican Stew)
7:30-7:45: Audience eats, Q&A, Jocelyn set up
7:45-8:05: Jocelyn Live Sound performance*

LATINOAMERICANIDAD
2019-04-02 18:00 - 20:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Description

The Loisaida Inc. Center in collaboraton with Caribbean Cultural Center and African Diaspora Intitute (CCCADI) present, Fabián Villegas:
LATINOAMERICANIDAD: RACIAL IDENTITIES, COLONIAL IMAGINARIES & NATIONAL NARRATIVES
About:
Fabián Villegas is a writer, journalist, spoken word artist, scholar and researcher in Global South epistemologies, decolonial thoughts and racial studies. Since 2007 to date, Villegas has been invited to give multiple conferences, seminars, lectures and workshops in various universities and academic centers, renowned art biennials and community cultural centers across the globe. He is also the co-founder of Contranarrativas, a collaborative project that seeks to create horizontal knowledge production spaces to stimulate the visibility, dissemination and production of epistemologies, decolonial narratives and peripheral aesthetics of the Global South. Born in Mexico City, Villegas currently resides in the Dominican Republic.
Join Fabián Villegas on April 2nd, 2019 from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at Loisaida Inc. Center – 710 East Ninth Street and Avenue C, for an evening of Storytelling, Spoken Word and Creative Writing.
Lower East Side, NYC (Loisaida)

Pasado y Presente: Art After the Young Lords
2019-05-03 | Nathan Cummings Foundation, 475 10th Avenue, New York, NY, 10018, United States
Pasado y Presente: Art After the Young Lords
On View at Nathan Cummings Foundation
475 10th Ave., 14th Floor
New York, NY 10018
May 3rd – October 25th, 2019.
Viewing is by appointment only.
Second site exhibition at Loisaida Inc. Center, opening to the public June 3rd, 2019

The Loisaida Inc. Center in partnership with the Nathan Cummings Foundation, are pleased to announce the opening of Pasado y Presente: Art After the Young Lords, an exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Young Lords Organization in New York that will be on view at the Nathan Cummings Foundation offices through October 25, 2019. Active between 1969 and 1975, The Young Lords described themselves as a revolutionary party fighting for the liberation of all oppressed people. Their spectacular demonstrations, artful self-presentation, and masterful deployment of DIY media via their newspaper, Pa’lante, brought international attention to demands voiced in black and brown communities across the United States for cultural equity, equal rights for women and the LGBTQ population; communal control of housing, healthcare, education, sanitation; alternatives to methadone; and independence for Puerto Rico and other subjugated nations.
Spanning different generations, nationalities, and ethnicities, the artists displayed in Pasado y Presente represent a creative community that is connected to the Young Lords by their passion for art in the service of social justice and vanguard aesthetics. The work displayed here illuminates the influence that the Lords have had on activists and artists far beyond their six years as a formal organization. Featured in this exhibit are documentary photographs of Young Lords activism by Máximo Colón and Luis Carle and vintage posters from Taller Boricua, an East Harlem print collective that was allied with the Young Lords. Additional artists on display include: AgitArte, Pepe Coronado, Sophia Dawson, Marcos Dimas, Hatuey Ramos Fermín, Miguel Luciano, Carlos Jesús Martínez Domínguez, Shellyne Rodríguez, Adrián Viajero Román, Juan Sánchez, Nitza Tufiño, Rafael Tufiño, and Valor y Cambio.
The Loisaida Center will also be the first host-site of the VyC (“Valor y Cambio”) machine, an ATM-style device, which will travel to various locations distributing bills and, in return, gather stories on video about what people value.
Pasado y Presente will be accompanied by a booklet and a related exhibition at the Loisaida Center by AgitArte, Coronado Print Studio, Sherezade García, and Valor y Cambio that explores migration, movement, intra-diasporic Caribbean identity in NYC, alternative economies, story-telling and decolonial narratives. On Sunday, May 26, several participating artists in Pasado y Presente will take part in interactive urban interventions during the 32nd Annual Loisaida Festival.
Additionally, Nathan Cummings and the Loisaida Center will host a series of public programs investigating topics such as history and influence of the Young Lords in New York, feminist and LBGTQ activism in Latinx communities, cultural production and organizing in Puerto Rico post-Maria, the intersection of environmental justice with anti-displacement efforts in NYC’s poor and working class neighborhoods. Updates and dates of programming will be posted on the Nathan Cummings and Loisaida Center websites.

To set up an appointment to visit the exhibit, contact exhibits@nathancummings.org
The related exhibition at the Loisaida Center will be on view starting June 3rd, Mondays through Thursdays from noon to 4pm, and by appointment. Contact info@loisaida.org for scheduling.

Related Programming:
The Liquid Highway
Sunday, May 26th, 2019 at Loisaida Inc. Center’s Courtyard (710 East Ninth Street near Avenue C) from 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm.
Developed in collaboration with No Longer Empty and taking place during the Loisaida Festival, The Liquid Highway is a participatory printmaking workshop that celebrates movement and migration. Artist, Scherezade Garcia, will be on site leading an interactive installation of marine landscapes on inner tube material presented as scrolls. This urban intervention and printmaking workshop honors our shared collective history and the commitments we have to one another. Through the act of printmaking, the public will have the opportunity to print a section of the landscape and own their own piece of this complex history.
Valor Y Cambio – NYC Launch
Sunday, May 26th, 2019 at Loisaida Festival STEM Zone (between 6th and 7th Streets on Avenue C) from 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm.
Valor y Cambio (#valorycambio) is a story-telling, community-building, and solidarity economy project started by the artists Frances Negrón-Muntaner and Sarabel Santos Negrón. It raises the question of what Puerto Ricans value as a society and introduces a community currency—pesos of Puerto Rico—as a means of change, in the sense of both money and social transformation.
After its successful February 2019 launch in Puerto Rico, the community currency interactive project will make its NYC debut during the Loisaida Festival, as part of the Eco- STEAM zone.

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

LOISAIDA SMORGASBORD CABARET & RESTORATION PROJECTS
2019-05-10 18:30 - 22:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
L.A.B. & Loisaida Inc. Center present: A night of visual art and performance not to be missed!
Friday, May 10, 2019
at the Loisaida Center, 710 E 9th St
6:30 pm – Doors Open to mingle and jingle
8:00 pm – Performances begin!
Event ends promptly at 10:00 pm
Plus:
Opening reception of: Rolando’s Winter Flowers & Bimbo Rivas’ post-mortem prints: part of the Loisaida Restoration Projects at El Semillero. Special Edition prints will be on sale!
And, a special world premiere screening of the new Garbagia Projects short by: Audaz Productions! Woohoo!
Loisaida Inc. presents an evening of esoteric clowns, iconoclastic puppetshows, and strange & wonderful performance in the 4th dimension!
Tickets: $10-15
This event will serve as a fundraiser for the upcoming free community workshops and events in the LES community gardens, hosted by LAB, More Gardens, and the Loisaida Center. Throughout the month of May, visiting artists from around the world will be collaborating with local artists, community volunteers and gardeners to create giant puppets, masks, costumes and installations. Final performances will be held in different gardens of the Lower East Side on Friday, May 24, and Saturday May 25, and of course on Sunday May 26 at the Loisaida Festival, with the parade and the theater lab, culminating in the community pageant. All performances will highlight the struggles, and celebrate the rich stories of the gardeners, the everyday heroes that bring back the green Oasis to the island of Manhattan.
Featured performers for the May 10 show include: Bryan Fernandez, Alexandra Tatarsky, Alex Millan, Merry Carver, Marta Maria, Paola Michelle’s yoni dance, Kalan Sherrard bringing you some ecclectic performance Watch Out! Returning to Loisaida for the fourth year; Adam Ende’s Jawbone Puppet Theater, Pablillo Varona Borges of Casa Mucaro, national treasure Daniel Polnau, and more!
This will seriously be a weird and wonderful show that you don’t want to miss out on!
Check out the Loisaida’s Restorations Project: http://loisaida.org/the-seedbed/restoration-projects/
And check the work of last year’s Loisaida Artists in Residence: More Gardens http://www.moregardens.org/

Fiestas de Cruz at Loisaida
2019-05-11 17:00 - 20:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Loisaida Inc. Center presents:
Fiestas de Cruz at Loisaida
Saturday, May 11 – 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm
A Loisaida Tradition!
Loisaida Inc. and its project The Plenatorium are pleased to host a performance and ritual stemming straight from the faith based history of Puerto Ricans in the Lower East Side. The “Feast of the Holy Cross” roughly translates into “Fiestas de Cruz” and members of the community have kept it alive from generation to generation through oral history. On these days during the month of May, many families, neighbors, friends and strangers would gather to recite a live rosary chant accompanied by Puerto Rican traditional plena sounds.
Come and enjoy the good company and traditional “plena” sounds of Puerto Rico.
Arrive promptly at 5:00 pm to savor a bowl of traditional “Sancocho” or Puerto Rican stew before the ceremonies begin. Courtesy of Pepe Flores.

Trans & Gender Equity in the YLP
2019-06-26 18:30 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Trans & Gender Equity in the YLP
June 26th, 6:30 pm
Loisaida Center, 710 E 9th St & Ave C
Join us for two intersecting conversations on:
6:30pm Revolution within the Revolution: Herstories of the Lords Party Women’s Union
Advocating for the total liberation of women, The Young Lords Women Union produced its own groundbreaking newspaper, La Luchadora, that addressed the specific socio-racial oppressions confronting Afro/Latinx women. Join Young Lords members Iris Morales and Gloria Rodriguez to discuss the platform and activism of the Young Lords Party Women’s Union and the Latinx feminist philosphy: Mujerismo. Moderated by Johanna Fernandez, PhD.
7:45pm Sylvia Rivera: the fusing catalyst
Sylvia Rivera was a Young Lords Party member (LES chapter) who was also an active voice and presence in the LGBTQ activism at the time of the Stonewall Riots. A native of the Bronx, Rivera was an icon of NYC’s transgender community, a member of GAA (Gay Activist Alliance) and GLF (Gay Liberation Front), and founder of STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries). Luis Carle, one of our participating artists and friends with Sylvia, has been documenting Borciua LGBTQ activism since the early 1980’s, and will join Anthony Rosado to discuss Rivera’s importance to their work, joined by Loisaida activist Juanita Ramos, co-founder of Comite Homosexual Latinoamericano. Moderated by Charles Rice-Gonzales, writer, long-time Bronx LGBT activist, co-founder of The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance (BAAD!).
This is a public program associated with Pasado Y Presente: Art after the Young Lords exhibition produced by Loisaida Center with the support of the Nathan Cummings Foundation.

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

Puerto Rico, Debt & Education led by artist-in-residence Jocelyn Bonadio-de Freitas
2019-06-28 18:30 - 20:30 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
How is the Puerto Rican debt crisis unfolding, and how is it affecting education systems on the island? How can we think about and understand the debt, and what, if anything, can be done about it? Audiences in diaspora on the Lower East Side and in Santurce gather to dialogue with organizers and journalists working on the island. Tembleque will be served. A new piece of music will be debuted by Artist-in-Residence Jocelyn Bonadio-de Freitas, who produced and curated this event along with Tara Rodriguez-Besosa of El Departamento de la Comida, in collaboration with :Pública.

DETAILS:
Friday, June 28th, 6:30pm

Speakers:

Eva Lourdes Ayala Reyes, Educamos
Luís J. Valentín Ortiz, Centro de Periodismo Investigativo
Members of Colectiva Feminista
Dr. Frances Negrón-Muntaner, Columbia University

Food by:

Chef Gabriela Álvarez of Liberation Cuisine
Vero Vero of El Departamento de la Comida

Music by:

Jocelyn Bonadio-de Freitas, Artist-in-Residence
Presented as part of the Loisaida Inc. Center AIR Program. Lead by resident artist, Jocelyn Bonadio de Freitas.

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

Los Tres del Tablao - Bohemia Flamenca
2019-07-03 19:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Don’t miss the only performance from ‘Los Tres del Tablao’ in the New York.
Come and enjoy this ‘Bohemia Flamenca’ directly from Puerto Rico.

The Infinite Flash of Memory: A conversation on Jardín de Pulpos (Octopus’s Garden)
2019-07-15 19:00 - 21:00 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
The Infinite Flash of Memory: A conversation on Jardín de Pulpos (Octopus’s Garden)
Date: Monday, July 15th, 2019
Time: 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Location: Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY 10009
FREE to the public. Limited seating. RSVP at caborca.tickets@gmail.com

About:
This evening features a discussion about Latin American resistance movements and protest-theatre art originated in the 20th century; about the collaborative creative process, dramaturgy, acting, staging, and translating Jardín de pulpos for the 21st century Anglophone US audience.
“The other time when we did the workshop [with actors], I told them that the public also writes as they are watching. You, [as playwright], write something that you think actors and actresses are acting on. The actors and actresses are acting something that they think the audience will understand and the audience understands something they need, but it is not necessarily what the author says, nor what the actors and actresses say. It is a great disagreement. What happens is that there is a disposition or willingness to believe.”
– from Juegos interiores: an interview with Arístides Vargas.

Presented by Caborca and Loisaida Inc., in partnership with The Graduate Program in Translation at the University of Puerto Rico in Río Piedras, and UArte – Universidad de las Artes in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Javier Antonio Gonzalez is a participant in the Global Connections–IN the LAB program, funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and administered by Theatre Communications Group, the national organization for the professional not-for-profit American theatre
This symposium is being presented alongside Caborca’s visionary new production of Octopus’s Garden in its first English language version. Translated by Aurora Lauzardo. Directed by Javier Antonio González. Octopus’s Garden runs at Target Margin Theater from July 12-21. For tickets to our performances visit https://octopusgarden.brownpapertickets.com
A man enlists the town madwoman to help him recover his memory at the seashore. He encounters the ghosts of his ancestors emerging from the rupture of authoritarian violence, inviting him to dream again.
Special guests:
Arístides Vargas – playwright, founder, and director of one of the most important groups of Contemporary Latin American Theater: the Malayerba Group.
Charo Francés – founder and director of the Malayerba Actoral Training Laboratory.
Rosa Luisa Márquez – Puerto Rican director, actress and professor, specializing in Ibero-American Theatre.
Aurora Lauzardo – translator, professor and co-chair of the Graduate Program in Translation at the University of Puerto Rico.
Javier Antonio González – playwright and artistic director of Caborca.
Moderator:
Rojo Robles – writer, playwright, filmmaker and instructor of Caribbean and Latinx Literature at Brooklyn College, CUNY.

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

Pasado y Presente: Art After the Young Lords - Exhibition Closing
2019-09-04 18:30 - 20:30 | The Loisaida Inc. Center, 710 East 9th Street, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Pasado y Presente: Art After the Young Lords
LIVE Artist Talk and Closing Reception
Loisaida, Inc. | 710 East 9th Street | New York, NY 10009
Wednesday, September 4, 2019 from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM (EDT)

The Loisaida Inc. Center in partnership with the Nathan Cummings Foundation, collaborated on: Pasado y Presente: Art After the Young Lords, an exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Young Lords Organization in New York that will be on view at the Nathan Cummings Foundation offices through October 25, 2019. More information here.
Join us for a report-back from the Valor Y Cambio Project: a story-telling, community-building, and solidarity economy initiative housed at the Pasado Y Presente: Art after the Young Lords exhibition on view at Loisaida. The report back, from artist and creator, Frances Negrón-Muntaner, will be followed by a dialogue with Dominican York participating artists on decolonial artistic / social practices, New York-Caribbean intra-diasporic ties, fluid understandings of value, mobility, exchange, solidarity processes and trans-national identity and belonging:
Pepe Coronado
Scherezade Garcia
Carlos Jesus Martinez Dominguez
Frances Negrón-Muntaner

To set up an appointment to visit the Nathan Cummings Foundation exhibit, contact exhibits@nathancummings.org

Related Programming:
LIFTING H.E.ARTS: THE PRESENT, THE FUTURE AND THE FOUNDATION
Saturday, September 7, 2019 at Pregones/PRTT | 575 Walton Avenue | The Bronx, NY 10451 from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM (EDT)
This event is in partnership with Pregones Theater, Nos Quedamos, South Bronx Unite, Mott Haven Community Land Stewards, and Taller Experimental de Arte. The event is a celebration of art and activism to close off the public programs of the Pasado Y Presente: Art After the Young Lords exhibition. Commencing with a plenero-led procession from Brook Park to the old Lincoln Detox Center in the South Bronx, the event will feature a mural unveiling, an update on the Mott Haven’s community land trust’s acquisition efforts, and a documentary screening – all focused on one culturally vital building – and at an important moment in time on the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Young Lords. With complimentary food and music and intersecting themes of community-led solutions in health, education, the arts, criminal justice, environmental justice and immigration, the event will include:
5:30 pm. RUMBA PROCESSION | BROOK PARK TO OLD LINCOLN DETOX/H.E.ARTS BUILDING AT WILLIS AVENUE PLAYGROUND
6:00 pm. MURAL UNVEILING | “WE HAVE A STORY TO TELL”
6:30 pm. HEALTH, EDUCATION, ARTS (H.E.ARTS) Project UPDATE
7:00 pm. THE PEOPLE’S DETOX | FILM SCREENING

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

LIFTING H.E.ARTS: THE PRESENT, THE FUTURE AND THE FOUNDATION
2019-09-07 17:30 - 20:30 | H.E.ARTS, 349 E 140th Street, New York, NY, 10451, United States
LIFTING H.E.ARTS: THE PRESENT, THE FUTURE AND THE FOUNDATION
LIVE Artist Talk and Closing Reception
349 E 140th Street | The Bronx, NY 10451
Saturday, September 7, 2019 from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM (EDT)

Join us on Saturday, September 7, for a celebration of art and activism in “Lifting H.E.ARTS: the Present, the Future and the Foundation.”
Commencing with a plenero-led procession from Brook Park to the old Lincoln Detox Center, the event will feature a mural unveiling, an update on our community land trust’s acquisition efforts and a film screening – all focused on one culturally vital building – and at an important moment in time on the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Young Lords. With complimentary food and music and intersecting themes of community-led solutions in health, education, the arts, criminal justice, environmental justice and immigration, the event will include:
5:30 pm. RUMBA PROCESSION | BROOK PARK TO OLD LINCOLN DETOX/H.E.ARTS BUILDING AT WILLIS AVENUE PLAYGROUND
At 5:30 pm, Pregones Theater- and Nos Quedamos- organized Stage Garden Rumba at Brook Park (East 141st St and Brook Ave) will lead a plenero-driven procession from Brook Park to the old Lincoln Detox Center/H.E.ARTS building at 345 East 140th Street where an event will already be underway to unveil the mural “We Have a Story to Tell.”
6:00 pm. MURAL UNVEILING | “WE HAVE A STORY TO TELL”
Hear local artist, Virginia Ayress, discuss seeing children being separated from their parents as the inspiration behind her newly completed mural, “We Have a Story to Tell..” The mural, created and painted by Ayress with the Experimental Art Workshop and volunteers from the community, aims to express the experience of immigrant children and their broken dreams.
6:30 pm. H.E.ARTS UPDATE
Hear Mychal Johnson, Member of the Board of Directors of the Mott Haven-Port Morris Community Land Stewards and Co-founder of South Bronx Unite, discuss the status of the local community land trust’s efforts to repair and restore the vacant old Lincoln Detox Center building and house nearly a dozen community-based organizations working in the fields of health (H), education (E) and the arts (ARTs) in a retrofitted space with offices, shared meeting areas, a culinary arts kitchen, classrooms and performance spaces. A full feasibility report has now been completed, documenting a fully baked, economically sustainable plan reflective of nearly five years of broad-based community envisioning sessions and extensive community based organization interviews.
7:00 pm. THE PEOPLE’S DETOX | FILM SCREENING
Hear Walter Bosque, former Young Lord, Licensed Acupuncturist and Co-founder of Lincoln Detox (1970-1978), introduce the film “The People’s Detox” to be screened in the handball court across the street from the building. In November 1970, Lincoln Hospital was taken over through the collective organizing of local heroin addicts, revolutionary health organizations, the Young Lords, members of the Black Panther Party as well as other organizations. Through political education, the clinic examined the role of global politics in the influx of heroin into urban centers as well as the economic incentives of the established protocols for drug treatment. With the introduction of acupuncture as an aid in detoxification, eventually replacing pharmaceutical treatments, it was not only the walls of the hospital that were breached but the very apparatus of addiction and recovery. “The People’s Detox” is a contemplative look at how the history of a revolutionary drug clinic reverberates through to contemporary notions of health and care. The film was directed by Jenna Bliss.

With support from the Nathan Cummings Foundation and part of the public events of Pasado Y Presente: Art after the Young Lords 1969-2019 produced by Loisaida Center. This event is in partnership with Pregones Theater, Nos Quedamos, South Bronx Unite, Mott Haven Community Land Stewards, and Taller Experimental de Arte. To set up an appointment to visit the Nathan Cummings Foundation exhibit, contact exhibits@nathancummings.org

“Opinions like those expressed while in a panel, presentation, performance or through artwork are expressed by the author in their personal capacity and are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Loisaida Inc., its affiliates or staff.”

Garbagia Hallucination Station - Summer Program
2019-09-22 14:00 - 18:00 | El Jardin del Paraiso, East 4th to E. 5th Streets, New York, NY, 10009, United States
Garbagia: Hallucination Station
Sunday, September 22, 2019 from 2:00 – 6:00 pm
at: El Jardin del Paraíso Garden, Lower East Side, NY

Garbagia Projects is on its fourth cycle and every year it keeps expanding its reach. This year, Garbagia: Hallucination Station explores re-envisioning of a new world and continues to address topics of climate change, sustainability of our planet and reducing and reusing our waste as a beloved material and resource. Hallucination Station will be this year’s platform to portray this vision of the future and showcase its possibilities. Time is running out… How can we change our destructive ways?
Garbagia Project is Loisaida Center’s annual Summer Program based on a series of free, open community art and puppetry workshops with a focus on creating works with materials while creating a story working on present issues related to ecological topics, community and nature/urban resources, understanding trash as a treasure for the development of a sustainable life and protecting the world.
For the first time, Garbagia’s Upcycled & 2nd Hand Fair and Garbagia’s Art Auction will be presented during Lower East Side Community Festival: LUNGS Harvest Fest.

+ MUSIC including PincLouds and Cookie Tongue! +
+ Sound Art +
+ Independent Performances +
+ Garbagia’s 4th Year Performance and Fashion Show +

This program is funded by the New York City Council’s Cultural Immigrant Initiative, in partnership with the New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs, Loisaida United Gardens and El Jardín del Paraíso Community Garden. Cover Art by: Patricio O’Hea
