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Entre Tinta y Lucha: 45 Years of Self Help Graphics & Art
Exhibition on view at Fine Arts Gallery August 21 through September 29, 2018
A partnership between Cal State LA and Self Help Graphics & Art,
with support from Cal State LA's Fine Arts Gallery
 

Entre Tinta y Lucha celebrates the 45th anniversary of the East Los Angeles cultural and community art organization, Self Help Graphics & Art (SHG).  The exhibition looks back at over four decades of the organization’s artistic innovation and excellence, organizational resilience and expanded activity, by featuring a display of over fifty fine art prints from throughout the organization’s history. Inspired by the Chicano Movement of the late 1960s and the rise of printmaking as a legitimate art form during the same period, SHG was founded by Franciscan nun, Sister Karen Boccalero, and local Chicano artists Carlos Bueno, Antonio Ibañez, and Frank Hernandez in East Los Angeles. Since its incorporation in 1973, SHG has produced over 1,000 art print editions, including 54 Atelier projects and exhibitions all over the world. The organization remains dedicated to the production, interpretation and distribution of prints and other art media by Chicana/o and Latinx artists; and its multidisciplinary, intergenerational programs promote artistic excellence and empower community by providing access to working space, tools, training and beyond. 

The exhibition also looks forward to an exciting evolution of Chicana/o and Latinx aesthetics. Undeniably, Self Help Graphics & Art has continued to represent the heart of the Chicano Art Movement in Los Angeles. Before major art institutions began exploring community engagement in the arts, SHG understood the power of art to affect change in our communities and that this shared experience defined how people from diverse backgrounds related to each other through their creative practices. Now, nearly a half century later, SHG continues to foster emerging Chicana/o and Latinx artists through its world-class printmaking studio and supports the role of artists as leaders, both within its organization and the community. A series of artist-led panels from the perspective of SHG’s print studio (see programming), will accompany the exhibition to get perspective from the artists themselves about the history and value of the organization to the community and the greater Los Angeles art world.   

Entre Tinta y Lucha marks a historic collaboration between Self Help Graphics & Art and Cal State LA-- two community institutions with roots in the Eastside of Los Angeles. The exhibition, panel discussions and workshop will be hosted at Cal State LA’s Fine Arts Gallery and is curated by university faculty members Michelle Lopez, MA/MFA and Victor Hugo Viesca, PhD., in partnership with Self Help Graphics & Art. The exhibition is FREE and open to Cal State LA students and the public beginning August 21, 2018- September 29, 2018. The Fine Arts Gallery is located at Cal State LA's main campus and is open Monday-Friday, 12pm-5pm. The gallery will be open extended hours, 6pm-9pm, during exhibition programming on the following Thursdays: September 6th, September 13, and September 27.

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