Ágora Cultural Architects, a cultural undertaking that promotes Latino arts and culture in the United States, has received a $700,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation to develop a Puerto Rican “cultural corridor” in the Eastern United States. The project, called Bori-Corridor, aims to connect Puerto Rican artists in the diaspora, particularly in Massachusetts, New York, and Connecticut, with local audiences and cultural organizations.
The development of the Bori-Corridor will include a call for proposals for artists or ensembles to participate in a presentation tour across various states, with Ágora providing support for the production and promotion of the events. The project will also involve the creation of an online map that identifies cultural centers specializing in Puerto Rican arts and culture, offering a historical and cultural overview of these institutions. The research phase for the map will be supported by the University of Puerto Rico’s Master of Arts and Cultural Management Program.
Bori-Corridor is expected to launch following the completion of the research phase for the interactive map, with the artistic tour across the states scheduled to begin in 2024. Ágora Cultural Architects, founded and led by women, aims to support the development and visibility of Latin American culture in the United States and has a track record of collaborating with cultural organizations in Puerto Rico and the United States.
The Mellon Foundation, a major sponsor of the arts and humanities in the United States, has provided significant support to Puerto Rican organizations and artists in recent years, granting over $50 million to cultural organizations and artists in Puerto Rico since 2018 to develop a sustainable cultural infrastructure. The Foundation believes that the arts and humanities are essential to human understanding and that they provide beauty, transcendence, and freedom. Through its grants, the Foundation aims to build communities enriched by their cohesion and empowered through critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive.