Celia Cruz Foundation

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History Unveiled Biographical Portrait of Celia Cruz by Photographer Robert Weingarten

Leticia del Monte — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 12:39:52 +0000

MIAMI, Florida/ October 3, 2012 Celia Cruz Foundation-The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History unveiled an object-based portrait of Celia Cruz featuring artifacts displayed in the museum. The Smithsonian collaborated with photographer Robert Weingarten to create the portrait.

Biographical portrait of Celia Cruz by Robert Weingarten

It’s a pop of vivid color and glimmering textures, tinted with memories of home, heritage, and, most of all, music. This biographical portrait by artist Robert Weingarten depicts Celia Cruz, the Queen of Salsa, and was unveiled this morning. It will be on display until May 2013.

We hope you like it because you, readers of the blog, voted for it. We asked you to pick which of five iconic American figuresshould be memorialized in a new Weingarten portrait and Cruz’s multifaceted story of immigration, music, and entertainment resonated with the most voters. “This was the first time I’ve agreed not to pick who I was working with,” said Weingarten, who listened to Cruz’s music as he worked.

Unlike most portraits, Weingarten’s don’t include an image of the subject. Instead, photographs of objects, documents, and other symbols that represent the person are layered into a composite image, conveying the individual’s biography in a unique way.

Weingarten usually asks his subjects to give him a list of items that answer the question, “If you could do your self-portrait… what would be on the list that would represent you?” Photographs of the individual, their family members, and pets aren’t allowed and the list must not include more than ten things. He describes this process as “somewhere between portraiture and self-portraiture.” Blog readers provided Weingarten with a list in the case of the Cruz portrait and their comments revealed many ways of looking at Cruz’s biography. The museum provided curatorial expertise and access to Cruz’s objects in the collection.

This world cloud represents blog readers’ comments about what was so important about the life of Celia Cruz.

“Celia left Cuba seeking freedom, which is the story of millions of Cubans,” wrote one commenter. “However, Celia converted this pain into art—into cheerful songs which reminded all Cubans—even those inside of the island—about the beautiful things of the island.”

Another wrote, “Nearly ten years after her death, her music is as relevant as ever. Her songs are played at every celebration I have ever been to (birthdays, quinces, weddings, etc…) because of their energy and their message. It makes sense that one of her final songs was ‘La Vida Es Un Carnaval’ (Life is a Carnival) because she was a symbol of hope to other immigrants.”

Others referred to her modesty, her African-Cuban roots, her humanitarian work, her trademark “Azúcar!” shout, and her flashy, eye-catching wardrobe.

“I think you captured Celia’s soul and life very well,” said Omer Pardillo Cid, President of the Celia Cruz Foundation to Weingarten.

American History Blog

El Nuevo Herald

Smithsonian Release

Diario de Cuba

Terra.com

Milenio.com

hola Ciudad

Filed under: Current Events Tagged: The Smithsonian National Museum

Celia Cruz to be honored at largest Cuban festival in U.S.

celiacruzlegacyproject — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 15:02:15 +0000

via nbclatino.com

Celia Cruz to be honored at largest Cuban festival in U.S.
by Kristina Puga
7:00 am on 07/29/2012
Sandra Castro may be a Colombian-American with a successful pet-sitting business, but she also spends half the year preparing for one of the biggest festivals in the country, which she helped to found. Now in its third year, the Festival Cubano in Chicago is the largest Cuban festival in America, and is now catching up with the popular alternative music festival, Lollapalooza. They will both take place in the windy city next weekend, August 4th and 5th.
This year, the festival will definitely have a lot of “azucar! In addition to having another star-studded lineup, including Isaac Delgado, Jose Alberto “El Canario,” Celia Cruz All Stars, and Tito Puente, Jr., the Festival Cubano is collaborating with The Celia Cruz Foundation to showcase memorabilia of the late salsa star.
“Being that she frequented Chicago many times, I think it’s important to have her presence there,” says Omer Pardillo, founder of The Celia Cruz Foundation. “I’m very proud to be her ex-manager and keep her legacy alive.”
Today, Pardillo hosts a weekly radio show “Azucar!, Celebrating the legacy of Celia Cruz”, on Sirius XM and represents the estate of Celia Cruz. He says he will be bringing with him some of Cruz’s items to the Festival, including original photographs, records, and probably a pair of shoes, among other things from his private collection.
Pardillo adds that Cruz did a lot of community work in her more than 40-year career, and since Cruz is the guest of honor at this year’s Festival, so is her legacy of philanthropy.
“We just partnered with The Chicago Cuba Project — an oral history project dedicated to documenting the lives of Cuban immigrants in the Chicago area,” says Castro. “They will be at the Festival to do catalog interviews for a future date, and we’ll be giving part of our proceeds to help fund the project.”
Castro, 39, says she and the other two co-founders of the Festival, her brother Rainier, 33, and George Herrera, 30, had some resistance from the Latino community at first.
“People said, ‘You are young kids, what are you trying to do?’ We just wanted to show our love and pride of Cuban culture,” says Castro. “It means a lot to me. I don’t know why…I always collected old Cuban music from the 40’s and 50’s. For me it’s really about the music. I’ve never been to Cuba.”
In the first year of the festival’s existence, to the surprise of the young founders who only had four months to prepare, 120,000 showed up over the two-day weekend.
Castro says it’s hard for her to explain in words, but she just wants to be able to share with others something she loves so much.

Filed under: Around the Web, Festivals

Celia All Stars ready to channel Celia Cruz at Festival Cubano

celiacruzlegacyproject — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 14:58:22 +0000

via nbclatino.com

Lenia Diaz of Celia Cruz All Stars (Courtesy Amigos Together For Kids Foundation)

Kristina Puga

5:30 am on 07/31/2012
This month marks the ninth-year anniversary of the passing of multi-Grammy winning salsa legend, Celia Cruz. Some might not know she had multiple platinum and gold records, more than 100 worldwide recognitions, as well as a doctorate in music from Yale. And, for many, the late Cruz is more than just a performer, she is their inimitable queen.
Three years ago, her ex-manager, Omer Pardillo, who had worked alongside Cruz for 12 years, decided to keep her musical legacy alive by putting together an impassioned group to continue playing her music live. This group of talented Cuban-born musicians, residing in Miami, are aptly named the Celia Cruz All Stars.
“Celia always wanted for her music and legacy to stay alive for future generations,” says Pardillo, who is also the keeper of her estate and founder of the Celia Cruz Foundation, which offers financial aid to Latino students who wish to study music. He says approximately 5 percent of the proceeds from Celia Cruz All Stars goes to the Foundation.
The 11 members of Celia Cruz All Stars have a lot in common. Besides all of them calling Cuba their home country, as well as living and breathing salsa music, it is the first time these A-list musicians will be performing at the Festival Cubano – the largest annual Cuban festival in the U.S.

Filed under: Around the Web

Celia Cruz and Friends

Leticia del Monte — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 00:50:33 +0000

Throughout her career, Celia welcomed every opportunity to lend her voice in support of charities worldwide.

“Cruz is undisputably the best known and most influential female figure in the history of
Cuban music.”

- Leila Cobo, Billboard Magazine

“Qué bueno que la obra de amor que mi hermana Celia Cruz comenzó hace tantos años continúe dando frutos y pueda ayudar a tanta gente. Por favor apoyen a esta noble causa.”

- Cristina Saralegui

“Understanding the historical musical legacy that Celia Cruz pioneered, in my opinion cannot
be fully explained without also realizing the kind of humanitarian that she was and the love and
warmth she reflected on and off the stage to everyone around her.”

- Jon Secada

“Celia Cruz siempre dijo presente para ayudar donde quiera que fuera. Entre sus obras de amor,
Celia también entrego su talento a mi fundación. Hoy debemos seguir su memoria apoyando a las causas benificas que ella siempre llevó cerca de su corazon.”

-Willy Chirino

“I feel very fortunate to have called Celia Cruz my friend. She was an inspiration not only as
an artist but as a woman and a remarkable human being.”

-Gloria Estefan

“Celia was an absolute pillar as a human being and one of the most unselfish humanitarians I have
ever met and am sure I will ever have known .”

- Marc Anthony

“Hay pocos artistas que han tenido y siguen teniendo un impacto a nivel global en nuestra música y nuestra cultura como lo hizo Celia Cruz. La Fundación Celia Cruz se trata de esto y el apoyo a la misma no solo asiste en este sentido, sino también es el vehículo para apoyar a las nuevas estrellas de nuestra música. “

- Victor Manuelle

I had the honor and pleasure of photographing Celia for twelve years. I’ll never forget her smile and her amazing energy. The biggest thing about Celia is that she never knew how great she truly was. She always made me feel so proud to be Cuban.”

-Alexis Rodriguez-Duarte

Filed under: Celia Cruz and Friends Tagged: Celia, Celia Cruz, Cristina Saralegui, Gloria Estefan, Jon Secada, Leila Cobo, Marc Anthony, United States

Paquito D’Rivera, other Latin legends see their stars unveiled in ceremony at Celia Cruz Plaza in Union City

celiacruzlegacyproject — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 13:48:02 +0000

via nj.com

UNION CITY – A multi Grammy-award winner, legendary merengue singers, and the area’s first Spanish-language TV station were among those given stars yesterday along the Walk of Fame at Celia Cruz Plaza.

Filed under: Around the Web Tagged: Celia Cruz, Celia Cruz Plaza, Paquito de Rivera, Walk of Fame

And the winner of the Frame an Iconic American contest is… – O Say Can You See?

celiacruzlegacyproject — Wed, 30 May 2012 14:41:00 +0000

We asked you to vote on which of five iconic American figures should be memorialized in a new biographical portrait by Robert Weingarten, a noted photographic artist. After more than 11,000 votes cast, the winner is…Celia Cruz! Each historical figure brought a different set of ideas to the discussion, and worthy arguments were made for each of them. The Queen of Salsa resonated with a clear majority of the voters, representing a multifaceted story of immigration, music, and entertainment.

Celia Cruz, ca. 1950s. Photo by Narcy Studios, Cuba, courtesy of Omer Pardillo-Cid.

“The comments on our contest pages hint at some of the challenges museum staff face when thinking about how we collect, preserve, and present history” says Shannon Perich, curator of the upcoming Pushing Boundaries: Portraits by Robert Weingarten exhibition. “Which stories do we tell and why? For some commenters, local allegiances were most important. For some, having a personal connection was the deciding factor. Others wrestled with the various ways in which we recognize the many kinds of contributions our heroes make to our society. This dynamic dialogue is important and we thank you for sharing your points of view with us.”

But we still need your help! Weingarten constructs his unique layered images by allowing his subjects to identify places and things that are important in their lives. Using the form below, we ask for your input on what words you would use to describe what was most important in the life of Celia Cruz.

To learn more about Cruz, read this tribute on our blog or visit our online exhibition, ¡Azúcar! The Life and Music of Celia Cruz.

This survey is powered by SurveyGizmo’s online survey software. Please take my survey now

Pushing Boundaries: Portraits by Robert Weingarten will be on view July 2-October 14 at the Smithsonian’s International Gallery, Ripley Center on the National Mall. The completed portrait of Celia Cruz will be unveiled this fall and displayed at the National Museum of American History.

via blog.americanhistory.si.edu

Filed under: Uncategorized

Celia Cruz The Next American Icon

Leticia del Monte — Wed, 16 May 2012 23:45:22 +0000

Celia Cruz in Cuba, ca. 1950s. Photo by Narcy Studios, Cuba

The National Museum of American History is looking to add a portrait of an American icon to its hallowed halls. Among the 5 nominees listed on their page stands Celia Cruz, the only Latino. Voting opened May 11, 2012 and runs through May 26, 2012. We are leading the votes right now, but with your help, we can push this over the top. Vote here.

Filed under: Current Events Tagged: Caribbean, Celia Cruz, Cuba, Miami, National Museum of American History, Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, Smithsonian Institution, United States

Multi Latin Grammy® Winner Juanes To Participate In The Schools Program

Leticia del Monte — Tue, 15 May 2012 13:05:18 +0000

This Educational Program, Presented by The Latin Recording Academy^®Will Take Place at Celia Cruz Bronx High School of Music on Tuesday, May 15

WHO: Seventeen-time Latin GRAMMY^®and GRAMMY^®-winning Colombian singer/songwriter Juanes, more than 100 high school students, and two-time Latin GRAMMY winning producer José Tillán will serve as moderator.

WHAT: Latin GRAMMYIn The Schools offers students a unique opportunity to hear first-hand from one of the most talented musicians in Latin music. This educational program, hosted by The Latin Recording Academy^®, will offer young people insight into the music industry as well as share personal influences and goals directly from the artist’s perspective. The program will be followed by a question and answer session and performance.

WHERE: Lehman College (adjacent to Celia Cruz Bronx High School of Music)

250 Bedford Park Blvd. West

Bronx, N.Y. 10468

ADDITIONAL INFO

Juanes’ impressive career, spanning more than a decade, includes five previous solo albums with sales of over 15 million copies. His sixth album, JUANES: MTV Unplugged is scheduled to be released on May 29 and includes the current hit single ”La Señal” which is No. 1 song in more than 16 countries. He is recognized as one of the Spanish-speaking world’s leading social media voices with an online following of more than 7 million fans and his dedication as a global activist extends to his wide ranging charitable work for his own Mi Sangre Foundation and as a co-founder of the “Paz sin Fronteras” (Peace Without Borders) organization.

The Latin Recording Academy is an international, membership-based organization comprised of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking recording artists, musicians, songwriters, producers and other creative and technical recording professionals. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for Latin music and its makers. In addition to producing the Latin GRAMMY Awards to honor excellence in the recorded arts and sciences, The Latin Recording Academy provides educational and outreach programs for the Latin music community. For more information about The Latin Recording Academy, please visit www.latingrammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, join the organization’s social networks as a Twitter follower at www.twitter.com/latingrammys, and a Facebook fan at www.facebook.com/latingrammys.