The Bronx Council on the Arts (established 1962), is an art based culture agency that has grown to become the official cultural agency of

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. It provides a “lifeline” to more than 4,800 artists and over 250 arts and community-based organizations.

History

The Bronx Council on the Arts was founded in the early 1960s when community leaders: Jerry Klot, Reverend William Kaladjian and others came together to provide summer arts & culture activities in the Bronx. In 1969 the Bronx Council on the arts merged with the Bronx Committee on the Arts and worked to improve access to the arts around the Bronx by introducing various programs around the Borough including the Bronx regrets program and the opening of the

Bronx Museum of the Arts The Bronx Museum of the Arts (BxMA), also called the Bronx Museum of Art or simply the Bronx Museum, is an American cultural institution located in Concourse, Bronx, New York. The museum focuses on contemporary and 20th-century works created by ...

. As the Bronx Council on the Arts continued to grow they offered their programs at various galleries and venues located throughout

but lacked a central space. That changed in 2011 when

Chase Chase or CHASE may refer to: Businesses * Chase Bank, a national bank based in New York City, New York * Chase Aircraft (1943–1954), a defunct American aircraft manufacturing company * Chase Coaches, a defunct bus operator in England * Chase C ...

donated the former

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Branch located at 2700 East Tremont Avenue to be used as their headquarters. Due to lack of funds, the group was unable to develop and utilize the space. In 2015 with support from Councilman

James Vacca James Vacca is an American politician who served in the New York City Council from the 13th district from 2006 to 2017. He is a Democrat. The district includes Allerton, Baychester, Bronx Park, City Island, Country Club, Ferry Point Park, ...

and Borough President

Ruben Diaz Jr Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob. Variants include Rúben in European Portuguese; Rubens in Brazilian Portuguese ...

and other donors, they were was able to obtain the funds needed to renovate the building and utilize it as their central office and moved in during 2019.

Programs

The Bronx Council on the Arts runs several programs including: * Bronx Recognizes Its Own Award (BRIO), established 1989Adam Wisnieski "Bronx Recognizes its Own musicians, writers and artists," ''The Riverdale Press'' June 15, 2011 http://www.riverdalepress.com/stories/Bronx-Recognizes-its-Own-musicians-writers-and-artists,48753 Damon Beres "New leader of Bronx Council on the Arts showcases creative side of boro," Daily News July 13th 2009 http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/bronx/2009/07/12/2009-07-12_new_leader_of_bronx_arts_council_showcases_creative_side_of_boro.html to support Bronx based artists and performers. The number of recipients and amount each grantee received has varied over the years and recipients are expected to do community service for a local arts organization as part of the award. * Bronx Writers Center - creative writing and professional development workshops. The Bronx Memoir Project is one of its projects. * Longwood Art Gallery - hosted by

Hostos Center for the Arts & Culture Hostos Center for the Arts & Culture is a performing arts and visual arts center located within Hostos Community College in the South Bronx, New York City. Hostos Center consists of a museum-grade art gallery, a 367-seat repertory theater, and a ...

in the

Hostos Community College Eugenio María de Hostos Community College of The City University of New York is a public community college in the South Bronx, New York City. It is part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system and was created by an act of the Board o ...

campus. * The Bronx Cultural Trolley Arts and Culture Tour.

APPLAUSE Awards

In 2011 the Bronx Council on the Arts created the APPLAUSE award to recognize artists and leaders from the Bronx. The first recipients included Eva Bornstein, executive director of Lehman Center for the Performing Arts; Madaha Kinsey-Lamb, founder and executive director of Mind-Builders Creative Arts Center; Holly Block, executive director of the Bronx Museum of the Arts; Gail Nathan, executive director of the Bronx River Art Center; and Rosalba Rolón, artistic director of

Pregones Theater The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater is a theater company based at the 47th Street Theater in New York City. It was founded as El Nuevo Círculo Dramatico (The New Drama Circuit) by Míriam Colón and Roberto Rodríguez. It was one of the first Pu ...

Bronx Writers Center

In 1996, the Bronx Council on the Arts created the Bronx Writers Center as a means of fostering community and empowering writers. The program has grown into a yearly series of workshops located at various cultural venues across the Bronx and functions as not just a place for emerging writers to cultivate their skill but a place for writers to find creative mentors, network and work on professional development. Through collaboration with

PEN American Center PEN America (formerly PEN American Center), founded in 1922 and headquartered in New York City, is a nonprofit organization that works to defend and celebrate free expression in the United States and worldwide through the advancement of liter ...

and the Bronx Museum of the Arts participants have the opportunity to participate in

PEN World Voices The PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature is an annual week-long literary festival held in New York City and Los Angeles. The festival was founded by Salman Rushdie, Esther Allen, and Michael Roberts and was launched in 2005. The fe ...

literary festival. In 2013,

Charlie Vazquez Charlie may refer to: Characters * "Charlie," the head of the Townsend Agency', from the ''Charlie's Angels'' franchise * Charlie, a character on signs for the CharlieCard, a smart card issued by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority * ...

led a weekly writing workshop at the Bronx Writing Center.

References

External links

official website
{{Authority control Art museums and galleries in the Bronx Culture of the Bronx Arts councils of the United States Arts organizations based in New York City Arts organizations established in 1962 1962 establishments in New York City Non-profit organizations based in the Bronx Westchester Square, Bronx