Comité Noviembre: A Celebration of Puerto Rican Culture & The Arts

Hostos Community College will once again host Comité Noviembre's Annual Puerto Rican Artisan's Fair & Exhibit, a fun filled cultural experience celebrating the arts and culture of Puerto Rico as part of Puerto Rican Heritage Month. The event will be held this Saturday, November 20th from 11AM to 9PM and will be in the Hostos gymnasium.

Last year's event was a beautiful experience of sight and sound with so many Puerto Rican artisans displaying their creations with the cacophony of live music of traditional Bomba and Plena permeating the air.  Several live performances evoked the traditional jibaro (affectionate term for a hick) life in Puerto Rico which is important to our culture as it was a time of a more self-sustaining culture living off the land - a simpler time compared to today's faced-paced cosmopolitan and metropolitan lifestyles that have invaded the island and are now pretty much the norm.  This year's event promises to be just as exciting and enriching as last year's as well.  This is a great opportunity for art lovers to purchase some beautiful pieces.

Check out our video from last year's event!

For Immediate Release

5th Annual Comité Noviembre Puerto Rican Artisans Fair & Exhibit 

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2010 

Hostos Community College - 450 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 

11AM – 9PM 

The Puerto Rican Artisan Fair & Exhibit was established in 2006, in celebration of Comité Noviembre's, 20th anniversary. Over 40 artesanos puertorriqueños from throughout the US and Puerto Rico participated and the event boasted an attendance of over 5000 people in this very first Fair. Last year's Fair continued to exceed CN's expectations with over 60 artisans participating and a steady 5000 people. 

The artisan fair this Saturday will include the following workshops: 

• Taíno Storytelling by Bobby González 

• Story of the 3 Kings and making of boxes and crowns by Teresa Santiago 

• Wood Working. Making Santos de Palo by Marta Iris Rodriguez 

• Spirituality and Taíno Petroglyph Art by Jose Muñoz 

• Introduction to Puerto Rican Genealogy by Charlie Fourquet 

Performing at the fair: 

• Master percussionist Obanilu Allende and the son of world renowned singer Danny Rivera, Daniel Rivera, Jr. 

For the past four years, CN has transformed, Hunter College West Building and the Church of St. Paul the Apostle into a typical Puerto Rican plaza with a fountain, palm trees, piragua and coquito carts and artists, sculptors, vejigante mask makers promoting and selling their wares while musical and cultural acts entertained throughout the day. This year will be no different at Hostos. CN will also continue to conduct cultural workshops for children and adults, like mask making, the history of the three kings’ celebration, Taíno storytelling in order to make sure that our youth learn about our culture. 

This free fair is an opportunity to kick-off the holiday shopping season by supporting our artesanos. 

For more information visit us online at: ComiteNoviembre.org. If you are on Twitter, follow us @comitenoviembre.

Drawings by Mexican Artist, Aurelio Del Muro On Display

Coqui Mexicano, who is not just a restaurant in Melrose but a local cultural institution, will be hosting, "Drawings  From the Story, "¿Un Anhelo?" - Aurelio Del Muro."  The exhibit is curated Hatuey Ramos -Fermin who is a self-described multimedia artist.

Aurelio Del Muro has been living in New York for more than half his life since 1978 and is originally from the city of San Luis Potosi, Mexico and since 1983 has been expressed his art through various media including sculpture.

So come on out and taste the arts in Melrose starting tomorrow, Friday November 12, 2010 from 6PM to 8PM with an opening reception at Coqui Mexicano where the exhibit will be on display until December 6, 2010.  Don't miss this great opportunity for having the arts brought into our community.

A big Melrose THANK YOU to Hatuey Ramos-Fermin for curating this exhibit and collaborating with Coqui Mexicano, one of Melrose's cultural gems.

Coqui Mexicano is located at

871 Brook Avenue 

(at the intersection of East 161st and 3rd Avenue, across from the Old Bronx Courthouse)

Bronx, NY 10451

718-450-3477

coquimexicano@ymail.com

"Doctor" Bob Lee of WBLS Live from Melrose At PeaceLove!

"Doctor" Bob Lee, of 107.5 WBLS FM, joined Melrose residents for the station's morning show.  Customers, as well as listeners of the station were treated to PeaceLove owner, Darada David's lovely voice belting out some tunes.  Patrons of the establishment watched on while enjoying PeaceLove's famous Sweet Potato Pie which is made fresh by Darada herself.
WBLS FM and "Doctor" Bob Lee's presence at PeaceLove Cafe is a testament to what a great thing we have going on here in Melrose.  The ONLY healthy food cafe in the South Bronx!  Where else can you network with other Bronxites whilst listening to live jazz?
By the way...yet another local Melrose resident joins the ranks of Bronx entrepreneurs...I had the pleasure of meeting Melissa Quintero, a life long Melrose resident and a fan of welcome2melrose at PeaceLove this morning.  Ms. Quintero happily told me that she will be opening a new business on 161st Street between Elton and Melrose Avenues in the Park View buildings.  She mentioned that she expects to be up and running within 5 weeks.  Welcome2Melrose will have more on that story in the coming weeks!
A big Melrose THANK YOU to "Doctor" Bob Lee and 107.5 WBLS FM for believing in PeaceLove and visiting us in Melrose!

"Doctor" Bob Lee enjoying a serving of Darada's awesome sweet potato pie...yeah it's that good

Lights..Camera...ACTION!!!!

Local Bronx resident will be holding auditions for a short student film that will be aired on Bronx Net, our very own local cable access network.  The craigslist listing is as follows and if you are interested in the listing you should respond ONLY to the craigslist email address and not welcome2melrose!  Although if you do make that mistake, mayhaps I will forward it to the appropriate channels.

Two male actors are needed for a short student film that will be aired on Bronx Net (cable public access channel.)

The two men play grad students who endure a strained romance when their circumstances force them to stay in the closet.

There is no pay but you will be credited and given a copy of the DVD.

Age is somewhat flexible but we are aiming for late 20's. Any race or ethnicity. We are not looking for effeminate men but rather "regular" guys whose sexual orientation is not obvious.

You must be comfortable kissing the other man on the lips - no tongue.

You must be available to shoot in the Bronx on Saturday, 11/20, and Saturday, 11/27. Please note that 11/27 is on Thanksgiving weekend. Actors not available both of those dates should not audition.

Auditions will be held near The Hub (Third Avenue and East 149th in the Bronx) on Monday, 11/8, from 2:30 - 3:30 and on Wednesday, 11/10, from 6:30 - 7:30.

If you're interested in auditioning please e-mail your head shot and your acting resume if you have one. We will contact you with an audition time and the exact location.

• Location: The Hub & Lehman College in the Bronx
• Compensation: no pay but credit and a copy of the DVD
• Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
• Please, no phone calls about this job!
• Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

Ghetto Film School in the News...

Check out this article in the New York Times about this wonderful institution in neighboring Port Morris/Mott Haven.  The Ghetto Film School has been around for the last ten years and is giving our great borough a chance to fulfill their dreams in the film industry. Great things are happening in the South Bronx!

Melrose Murals

Part of a larger mural in the parking lot behind Nos Quedamos/We Stay

depicting the Lady Justice statue of the Old Bronx Courthouse which is a landmark building.

Actual Lady Justice at the Old Courthouse

Melrose Murals and the Arts

Over the next few months, Welcome2Melrose will be featuring photographs of local murals as well as works of art by graffiti artists.  While some may disagree that graffiti is not art and is vandalism, it is our goal to open your minds to see it as a form of expression.  Not all forms of graffiti are vandalism...just voices yearning to be heard.  Melrose, along with Mott Haven, Port Morris and Hunts Point, is the heart of the artistic side of the Bronx with such wonderful institutions as Bruckner Bar and Grill which hosts cultural events, BAAD (Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance) over in Hunts Point, Teatro Pregrones, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos.  Even Coqui Mexicano, a local Puerto Rican-Mexican fusion restaurant, supports the arts by displaying and selling artwork in addition to their fine cuisine.  Then there's PeaceLove Cafe which serves up organic and fair trade coffees and teas, home made desserts like all natural sweet potato pie, bread pudding and amazing ALL NATURAL soups, salads and freshly made sandwiches...with a side of LIVE JAZZ on Friday and Saturday evenings and Poetry on Thursdays from 4:30PM - 7:00PM.  

So you see, Melrose and our surrounding neighborhoods are bursting with the arts in all of its expressions and we just mentioned a fraction of what is available to all of us.

And now for our first picture in our series documenting Melrose Murals and the Arts.

"When it Hits...You Feel No Pain"

Located on E 162nd Street Between Melrose and Courtlandt Avenues

(Click photo for larger image)

ANTHEM: an all-american dystopia - An Evening of Art, Artists, Wine and Coquito

Last night at Hostos Community College, the Longwood Arts Gallery was abuzz with activity for the launch of a new exhibit, ANTHEM: an all-american dystopia.  The exhibit is a 20th anniversary celebration of the Bronx Council on the Arts' BRIO (Bronx Recognizes Its Own) award and according to the Longwood Arts Project, this exhibit, "explores an America within the crux of reforming a national identity; family, health, politics, urban crisis and decay, environmental issues, consumerism and globalization."  The exhibition is curated by Melissa A. Calderón, a local Bronx Latina artist who received her BA in Art History from CUNY Lehman College and works in various forms of media such as sculpture, installations and photography.

Every artists in this program are BRIO award winners from 2008 or 2009 and all have created works that are multidimensional in their scope of message and what you see may not necessarily be what it means.  The show is broad in its scope and definitely worth a trip to the Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos Community College whether you are from the Bronx or not so take the 2,4 or 5 express train to 149th/Grand Concourse and check out just a small sample of what The Bronx has to offer.

Also of notable importance, last night during the opening of the exhibit right in the gallery space was also host to The International Coquito Federation - Coquito Masters Qualifier Series for 2009.  For those of you who do not know what coquito is, it is Puerto Rico's answer to Christmas Eggnog made of rum, coconut cream, cinnamon to name just a few of its ingredients.  The ICF is the project of Debbie Quiñones who says its mission is to promote coquito around the world as a gourmet drink as well as cultural awareness.  Oh and did I mention that Coqui Mexicano's entry now qualifies for the great coquito showdown on December 19th at El Museo del Barrio?  Yes...You heard it here!  If their coquito is good enough to qualify for such a prestigious event, can you imagine what their food is like?


So here's a big Melrose THANK YOU to Longwood Gallery, Bronx Council on the Arts, all participating artists and supporters for bringing the arts to the Bronx and in particularly to the South Bronx and Melrose.
Also would like to give out or first big WEPA! to Coqui Mexicano for qualifying to compete at the big coquito showdown on December 19th at El Museo del Barrio...Coquito Mexicano truly are what comunidad (community) is all about! (Wepa is a Puerto Rican exclamation of joy and happiness, similar to the Greek OPA!)

Birds with syringes for beaks

Debbie Quiñones, President of the International Coquito Federation explains the federation's mission to the gallery attendees.

Melissa A. Calderón addressing the crowd.

The Coqui half of Coqui Mexicano takes in one of the exhibits which caught her eye.