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Hartranft: Keeping residents inspired through art By Candice Matthews
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Residents explore art created by local artisans at the 20th annual Book and Craft Fair in 2006-- an event organized by Taller Puertorriqueno. |
Daniel de Jesus breeds a new perspective on how to help community artists. As thes special events coordinator at Taller Puertorriqueno, an organization that promotes Puerto Rican culture through art, de Jesus is determined to give local artists a voice. A 24-year old graduate of the University of the Arts, de Jesus works with the community artists in order to promote creative and cultural expression. He helped bring artists to the community and bring art to the local businesses with the Noches de Arte en el Barrio (Art Nights in the Barrio) event in September. Graffiti art, a form of communication by today’s youth, was the focus of the event. A primary goal of the festivity was to “make local people aware of these artists in their own backyard,” de Jesus says |
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“We have the idea that these artists get the chance to showcase their work in an environment that is open for the public and the community,” says de Jesus. While most local artists thrive on their own, de Jesus says Taller helps at-risk youth with workshops. “Instead of them being influenced by drugs and gangs, they have a place to come where there’s something that’s very constructive. They get to express themselves creatively.” |
Residents of the community participating in art activities with a Taller Puertorriqueno mural as a vivid backdrop. |
Taller strives to place art in an area where it normally is not expected. Abandoned buildings and garbage line the streets, but art still has a presence. In a community where the majority seems uninterested, there are a growing number of people who want to reclaim their community and their heritage, de Jesus says. Although many local artists do not have the opportunity to place their art in professional galleries, Taller allows them to showcase their work in various ways. The 23rd annual Feria del Barrio (Barrio Fair), also held in September, combined food, arts, dance, music, and community activities where artists could promote their visual creations. Unlike the Noches event, it begins in the afternoon and lasts until the evening. De Jesus loves art and plans to bring it back to the community. “The arts can teach so much and they can create such a wonderful environment and this is why I love what I do. |
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“In a neighborhood where the media has portrayed it as ‘the Badlands,’ it’s really difficult to get people to see it the other way,” de Jesus says. Some of the good in the area is seen in the collaboration of communities with art. The Visions of a Community exhibit, which de Jesus spearheaded in June, brought together artists from diverse backgrounds and communities. de Jesus curated the exhibition with Laura Semmelroth, Service Coordinator of the Coral Street Arts House, which allowed African Americans, Caucasians, and Latinos to display their artwork. Whether he helps artists create a portfolio or resume, de Jesus wants to promote the talents of the neighborhood residents. Ultimately, de Jesus wants to publish a book about North Philadelphia artists, whom he usually meets at local festivals.
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Local artists prove that it is possible to stay positive amidst the nay-sayers, and according to de Jesus, most local people do it themselves. “They’re creating art all of the time; if they’re not selling it, they’re putting it in shows. In reality, we’re [Taller] just a support system. We’re the center for Latin American art." Art has its own energy, he says, and Taller tries to nurture it. |
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