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Supported by the First Tennessee Foundation/ArtsFirst and ArtsMemphis

Crosstown Arts is pleased to partner with Centro Cultural Latino de Memphis for a series of exhibitions and events to showcase the work of Latino artists living and working in Memphis and to celebrate elements and traditions of Latino culture as an integral part of the creative community of Memphis. This partnership is made possible by a generous grant from the First Tennessee Foundation, ArtsFirst and ArtsMemphis. The partnership builds on the substantial work that Centro Cultural Latino de Memphis has accomplished and furthers Crosstown Arts’ ongoing mission to help combine audiences, further expand inclusivity and provide opportunities to all of Memphis’ creative community.

Two large-scale partnership events were Stories on My Back on view at Crosstown Arts during the month of June 2015, and the Tamale Fest at Caritas Village, held on June 28, 2015. Created by bi-cultural Memphis artist Richard Lou, Stories On My Back is a multi-media installation that incorporates audio, video, digital photographs, thousands of tamale leaves. This work has never been installed or seen in its entirety in Memphis. Later that month, Crosstown Arts was an integral partner with Centro Cultural and Caritas Village for the Tamale Fest, the first annual fundraising event for Centro Cultural. This event featured tamale-cooking teams and contests, tamale tastings, food trucks, live entertainment, an artist market and family activities.

In addition to an 18-month schedule of exhibitions and events, detailed below, several longer-term artistic projects will be launched through the partnership: the Crosstown-Centro Billboard Program will feature artwork displayed on a billboard on North Cleveland; and the Tamale Stories video project will capture and share the diverse Memphis’ community’s cross-cultural stories and memories of the beloved “tamal” or “tamale.”

Calendar of Events

SPRING 2015

Centro Cultural Spring Showcase
Saturday, April 25, 5-7 pm, Crosstown Arts, 430 N. Cleveland

Showcase of visual and performing arts organized by Centro Cultural

Tamale Cooking Demo
Saturday, May 16, 2 pm, at Latino Memphis, 6041 Mt. Moriah Rd

This one-hour cooking demo will be facilitated by a local tamale-making expert (or “tamalero/a” in Spanish). The tamalero/a will share his/her own family recipe and will walk the attendees through a step-by-step process for making tamales at home.

$10 admission/donation to benefit Centro Cultural.

SUMMER 2015

Richard Lou: Stories on my Back
Multumedia installation on view June 5-July 4, 2015, Crosstown Arts Gallery, 422 N. Cleveland
Opening Night: Friday, June 5, 6-9 pm
Food trucks, live music and more

Exhibition Programs: Saturday, June 6, 2-4 pm
Lecture by Visiting Scholar Guisela LaTorre, 430 N. Cleveland, 2 pm
Gallery Talk with Richard Lou & Guisela LaTorre, 422 N. Cleveland, 3 pm

Tamale Cooking Demo
Sunday, June 7, 3 pm, Crosstown Arts, 430 N. Cleveland
This one-hour cooking demo will be facilitated by a local tamale-making expert (or “tamalero/a” in Spanish). The tamalero/a will share his/her own family recipe and will walk the attendees through a step-by-step process for making tamales at home.
$10 admission/donation to benefit Centro Cultural.

PechaKucha Night Volume 12
Thursday, June 25, 6:30 pm, Phuong Long, 306 N. Cleveland
An evening of fun, fast-paced presentations themed around food, made by community members. Presenters for this installment: Miles Tamboli, Wes Riddle, Ben McLean, Noah Campbell, Margarita Sandino, Onie Johns, Rachel Neely Williams & Edna Banks-Hawkins
Free admission.

Tamale Fest
Saturday, June 27, 2-6 pm, Caritas Village, 2509 Harvard Avenue in Binghampton
Organized by Centro Cultural, Caritas Village and Crosstown Arts
Tamale Fest 2015 is the first annual fundraising event for Centro Cultural. The festival will have main stage live entertainment, a tamale team cooking contest, a tamale tasting tent, a kids’ activity corner, art vendors, food trucks and a photo booth. Centro Cultural was founded in 2011 and has been operating as a 100% volunteer-run organization. Accomplishments to date include over 60 cultural workshops taught, 13 showcases celebrated, 6 art exhibits produced, collaboration with Dixon Gallery and Gardens produced the first contemporary Latino Art exhibition in Memphis, current development of a book based on immigrant stories in Binghamton and over 5000 hours of volunteer time given. The purpose of the Tamale Fest is to share and celebrate Latino culture, bring people together for a positive cultural experience and to raise money to allow Centro Cultural to expand their programs and administration.

FALL 2015

Centro Cultural Visual Arts Showcase
Friday, November 6-28, 2015, Crosstown Arts Gallery, 422 N. Cleveland

FALL 2016

Exhibition of Latino/a Artist Portraits
November 2016, Crosstown Arts Gallery, 422 N. Cleveland

ONGOING / UPCOMING

• Crosstown-Centro Billboard Program at 431 N. Cleveland
• Centro Cultural’s Latino/a Artist Registry
• Tamale Stories video project