William Paterson University (WP) presents “El cartel/The Poster: Puerto Rican Graphics.” This exhibition of work by leading Puerto Rican printmakers, curated by Alejandro Anreus, opened yesterday (January 30, 2023) at the South Gallery of the Ben Shahn Center for the Visual Arts at WP. A Curator’s Talk will take place on Wednesday, February 15 (2:00-3:00pm) followed by the opening reception.

The exhibition will be on view until May 5, 2023.

Description: Curated by Alejandro Anreus, WP professor of art history and Latin American/Latinx studies, this exhibition showcases printed posters created by leading Puerto Rican and Nuyorican printmakers at the Taller de Artes Graficas of the Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña in San Juan under the leadership of master printer Lorenzo Homar, and at the Taller Boricua in New York City, between 1960 and 2013. Drawn from an impressive print collection formed and recently donated to the William Paterson University Galleries by artist Gloria Rodriguez Calero in memory of her late husband Angelo Antolino and in honor of Alejandro Anreus, these works capture the issues and reflect the conscience of Puerto Ricans living on the island and in the diaspora over a half century when graphic design became entwined with the movement for independence. Central to this focus on printmaking was the development of one of the most sophisticated and effective uses of the silkscreen (serigraphy) technique. Printmakers represented in the exhibition include José Alicea, López Alomar, Luis Alonso, Isabel Bernal, Gloria Rodriguez Calero, Jose Rosa Castellanos, Fran Cervoni, Wilfredo Chiesa, Gilberto Hernandez, Lorenzo Homar, Carlos Irizarry, Antonio Martorell, Rafael Rivera Rosa, Fernando Salicrup, Carmelo Sobrino, Jorge Soto, Rafael Tufiño, and Manuel Vega.

For more information, see https://www.wpunj.edu/coac/gallery/Exhibitions/current-exhibitions   

[Shown above: On view in “El Cartel/The Poster: Puerto Rican Graphics.” Lorenzo Homar, “The Poster in Puerto Rico, 1950-1971,” 1971, silkscreen, 24 1/4 x 18 1/2 inches, courtesy of the artist and the University Galleries Permanent Collection.]