Last March 12th, 2009, Casa de Venezuela held a reception to officially celebrate the opening of its 2nd Annual Art Exhibition, entitled Diálogo 365.

The magnificent space of the Ice Box at the Crane Building in Philadelphia witnessed the most recent and widest expression of Latin American art through the work of thirty seven artists from Philadelphia, Washington DC, New York and Venezuela.

Diálogo 365 explores a visual dialogue that challenges our pre-established concepts of origin, belonging, migration, displacement, transformation, territory and boundaries related to Latin America; aiming to create a space for further thought on social and cultural understanding about this region. The media was extended to include video installation and sculpture; in addition to painting, drawing, photography, and mixed media.

► View slideshow of the art exhibition 

Emilio Buitrago, President of Casa de Venezuela, welcomed artists and guests. Remarks were given by two of the major official sponsors of this exhibition, Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez and Brigg López-Martinez, CEO of MIC International Trade Consulting.

Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez mentioned the importance of arts in the Latino community and how it plays an important role in the sustainability of our communities the creation of social changes. The Crane Building is located within the boundaries of the 7th District, a jurisdiction that Councilwoman Quiñones-Sánchez oversees.

Brigg López-Martinez, CEO of MIC International Trade Consulting, the high-level sponsor of Diálogo 365, with the interpretive help of Iris Violeta Colon, poet and writer, spoke of the importance of leaving behind a legacy and using his message towards the hard work of artists for writing history through their art in today’s society.

Andreina Castillo, Board Member and Secretary of Culture of Casa de Venezuela, and curator of Diálogo 365 explained the significance of this exhibition:” as a visual transformation based on social paths that result in magnificent expressions of new meaning; artistic definitions that break the status quo and reach out to create a new language for what emotional tools we need to survive in a different context, whether is visual, physical or mentally”.

Over 600 people attended the opening, and enjoyed an evening filled with energy, camaraderie and pride for the remarkable work of these talented artists.

Among the special guest and friends attending were: Carmen Febo-San Miguel of Taller Puertorriqueño, Johnny Irizarry from La Casa Latina at the University of Pennsylvania Sara Ramos from the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (sponsor), Leyla Moreno from Health Partners (sponsor), Helen Cunningham from the Samuel L. Fels Fund (sponsor), Iris Violeta Colon, poet and writer, Pablo Bianchi from ALPFA, Maria Mill-Torres from the School District of Philadelphia, Monica Rodrigo from Raices Culturales, Nancy Meza, Consul General of Venezuela in Washington DC, among other friends and supporters.

► View slideshow of the opening reception 

Certificates of recognition were given to the artists as a present during the reception, some of whom had arrived that evening from New York, Virginia and Maryland. They also received a lapel pin with the logo of Casa de Venezuela, which is used to recognize members of the organization during special events and for outstanding performance. A special recognition was given to the jury panel that worked to select from a pool of more than eighty applications for the difficult task of selecting the most representative work for this year’s theme of this exhibition. They were: Julia Lopez (Leeway Foundation/Centro Pedro Claver), Sandra Andino (Taller Puertorriqueño), Isabel Debeary (Galeria La Isabela) and Tony Fisher (Indigo Gallery).

Casa de Venezuela and Diálogo 365 has marked a precedent moment in the artists scene of the region by presenting and supporting the work of all these artists by exhibiting them in one of the most contemporary art locations in the city, the magnificent Ice Box at the Crane Building in the City of Philadelphia.

Infinite and special thanks to the artists for lending their works during the run of this exhibition: Adrian Abonce, Alejandra Villasmil, Alexis Duque, Alicia Meza, Alvaro Altamar, Amalfi Ramirez-Finnerty, Andria Bibiloni, Betsy Casañas, Blanca Gruber, Carlos Nuñez, Daniel de Jesús, David Hernandez, Dio-genes Abreu, Doris Nogueira-Rogers, Erick Sánchez, Gina Echeverry, Giovanni Escala, Henry Bermudez, Isaias Amaro, Jorge Figueroa, Jose Guacache, Jose Guedez, Karim Márquez, Karla Blanchard, Luz Selenia Salas, Marta Sánchez, Maximiliano Medina, Michelle Ortiz, Nicky Enright, Rafael Aviles, Renzo Ortega, Romulo Peña, Roxana Pérez-Méndez, Simón Bolívar, Susana Amundaraín, Tony Rocco and Vladimir Da’costa.

We would also like to thank all the volunteers, board members of Casa de Venezuela for their hard work and to the Crane Arts Building for opening its doors to the Latino community. Special thanks to the official Sponsors of Dialogo 365: MIC International Trade Consulting, Philadelphia Foundation, Samuel Fels Fund, Office of Councilwoman Maria Quinones-Sanchez, The Multicultural Affairs Congress, The Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Health Partners, Impacto Latin newspaper, WFMZ-69 Noticias en Español, El Tiempo Hispano Newspaper and Univision.

Dialgo 365 will be open to the public until March 27th, on this date Casa de Venezuela will closet he exhibition with another reception that will include live music and cocktails, starting at 6:00pm.