Join us on the first venture of
the VSA to Latin America! This will also be the first comprehensive
trip by a US-based cultural organization of which we are aware to
cover the art and architecture of Puerto Rico. And Puerto Rico is
welcoming us with open arms!
Why Puerto
Rico?
The island is a treasure trove of important 19th and early 20th
century buildings and artwork. And much of it has been beautifully and
professionally conserved, restored, and interpreted by scholars and
writers eager to give us privileged access.
But is it
“American”?
The island’s fortunes have been firmly tied to those of the United
States since even before the norteamericano takeover of the
former Spanish colony in 1898. Its currency is the US dollar, it uses
US postage, and Puerto Ricans are US citizens.
No passport
needed; no customs to clear. Most everyone you meet will speak English
as well as Spanish.
OK, but is it “Victorian”?
The same forces that fueled “Victorian” art, architecture and culture
in Britain and the United States – rapid industrialization,
increasingly international markets, the rise of the middle class,
improvements in education and artistic training – were also in action
in Puerto Rico.
From these came a transformation in architecture, art, literature, and
mindset that parallel those we consider “Victorian.” It is endlessly
interesting to study and compare – and contrast – our related
cultures.
Brochure
Click here to
download the official tour brochure, itinerary and application form.
Adobe Acrobat reader required.
Suggested non-fiction reading
100
Masterpieces: Museo de Arte de Ponce (Ponce, P.R.: Museo de Arte
de Ponce, 2002). Lavishly illustrated selective catalogue. In
Spanish and English.
Juan Antonio Gaya
Nuño, La Pintura Puertorriqueña [Puerto Rican Painting]
(c. 1965; reprinted by Estudios Sorianos, 1995). In Spanish.
Thomas S. Marvel
and Maria Luisa Moreno,
Arquitectura de Templos Parroquiales de Puerto Rico / Architecture of
Parish Churches in Puerto Rico (San Juan: Editorial de la
Universidad de Puerto Rico, 1994). Basic guide to church architecture
and decoration in Puerto Rico. In Spanish and English.
Jorge Rigau,
Puerto Rico 1900 (New York: Rizzoli, 1992). Profusely
illustrated. In English. Author will be our keynote speaker and one
of the tour leaders.
Enrique Vivoni
Farage et al., Hispanophilia: Architecture and Life in Puerto Rico,
1900-1950 (San Juan: Editorial de la Universidad de Puerto Rico,
1998). Conference papers. In Spanish and English. Author will be
one of our hosts and tour leaders.
Suggested
fiction reading
Rosario Ferré,
The House on the Lagoon (New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux,
1995). Lively, engrossing and enlightening story of several
generations of a Puerto Rican family involved with art and
architecture during the 19th and 20th
centuries. In English (trans.). The author will be one of our
hosts.
Suggested
guidebooks
(in English)
Several are
available, but these have the best coverage of art, architecture and
culture, we think.
Insight Guide to Puerto Rico.
Lonely Planet Guide to Puerto Rico.
