El Museo Del Barrio

1969 - present

Created in 1969, when New York City’s Superintendent appointed Raphael Monotiz Ortiz, a local artist and educator to create a curriculum that highlights Puerto Rican Art and Culture. The artist took this as an opportunity to show the city something more. Going back to his cultural home of Puerto Rico, Ortiz decided that he would instead conceive a Museum, focusing on Puerto Rican heritage. Originally operating in a classroom at PS 125, it became so popular that it moved to PS 206. In 1971, the museum was filed as a nonprofit, being highlighted in several publications such as Art in America and Culture, and received its first permanent collection by world renowned artist, Florencio Garcia Ciscernos. As its popularity grew so did the location, and in 1977 it joined the Cultural Institutions Group through then mayor, Edward J. Koch. The museum continues to expand, now hosting galas and being used in popular media such as Sesame Street. In 2000 they started expanding their board of trustees to include non Latinos and Latinos of other nationalities. In 2002 they appointed their first non Puerto Rican Museum curator. Today it stands as a world renowned museum putting on shows and the annual, “Three Kings Day” parade.