Self Help Graphics & Art facts for kids

The Self-Help Graphics & Art building

Self Help Graphics & Art, Inc. is a special place in East Los Angeles, California. It's a community art center that started in 1970. This center was very important during the Chicano art movement, helping Chicano and Latino artists create and share their work.

Self Help Graphics is famous for its yearly Day of the Dead celebrations. They also host art shows and music events. Many well-known artists from Los Angeles have worked with them, like Barbara Carrasco and Shizu Saldamando.

The Story of Self Help Graphics

In 1970, an artist and nun named Karen Boccalero began making art prints in a garage in East Los Angeles. She worked with other Chicano artists like Carlos Bueno and Antonio Ibáñez. Their goal was to support community art, help local artists, and use art to bring about social change in their neighborhood. They also wanted to create a cultural art center.

Their first art show happened the next year at a shopping center called El Mercado. In 1973, the group, then called Art Inc., changed its name to Self Help Graphics & Art. They found a new home in an office building in Boyle Heights. The Sisters of St. Francis helped pay for this space. The next year, they got a grant that allowed them to make the space even bigger.

The center's first official activity was a workshop where people learned batik and silkscreen art. It ended with an art show. This started a tradition at Self Help Graphics: teaching new artists different art techniques. Soon, the California Arts Council provided money to hire art teachers. The first Day of the Dead celebration in the USA also began at Self Help Graphics in 1974.

At first, it was hard to get money for Self Help Graphics. Karen Boccalero raised funds from art lovers and asked for donations from art stores and churches. In 1974, the artists realized they needed help from bigger groups like the National Endowment for the Arts. Karen learned how to write grant applications and hired staff to help.

In 1979, Self Help Graphics moved to a larger building. This building was owned by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Self Help Graphics paid only one dollar a year in rent! This shows how important the Church was in helping the center exist back then.

The old Self Help building had an art gallery, a printing room, offices, and studios for artists. Today, the outside walls of that building are covered with ceramic art, mosaics, and murals. A large statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe that was in the parking lot was moved to their new building.

Karen Boccalero led the center until she passed away in 1997. After some changes and challenges, including a financial crisis in 2005, the center faced a tough time. The building needed repairs, and there were questions about who owned it.

In 2011, Self Help Graphics moved to a new location at 1300 East First Street in Boyle Heights. The Our Lady of Guadalupe statue moved with them. Then, in April 2018, Self Help Graphics & Art bought its headquarters! This was a huge step, making sure the center would stay in East Los Angeles for many years. They got help from the City of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and other groups to buy the building.

Art Programs at Self Help Graphics

Barrio Mobile Art Studio

In 1974, Self Help Graphics started the Barrio Mobile Art Studio (BMAS). This was a big van filled with art supplies. Its goal was to help people enjoy art, express themselves, and learn about Chicano culture. During the week, the BMAS visited schools, teaching photography, sculpture, and filmmaking. On weekends, the van went to neighborhoods like Boyle Heights, offering art materials and training to everyone. Even members of street gangs were encouraged to join. The program ended in 1985 but inspired similar art programs elsewhere.

Atelier Program

In 1982, Self Help Graphics started an "Experimental Screenprint Atelier." This was a workshop for a special kind of serigraphy (screen printing) that was more detailed and expensive. It helped artists create higher-quality art, which brought more respect to both the artists and the center. This program also helped fund Self Help Graphics by selling the prints.

These workshops happen at least twice a year and often focus on a specific topic. For example, artists made prints about people being forced out of their homes in the city. Other themes have included the Virgin of Guadalupe, AIDS, and the 1992 Los Angeles riots. There are also special projects, like the Maestras Atelier, a workshop just for female artists.

Chicano Expressions

"Chicano Expressions" was an art show that traveled around the world. It showed art from 20 artists in places like South Africa, Germany, and Spain in 1993. This helped people in other countries learn about American culture and values. Some artists and staff from Self Help Graphics even traveled with the show, connecting with artists from different countries.

In 1996, Self Help Graphics & Art was invited to Glasgow, Scotland, to work with artists there on Day of the Dead workshops and celebrations.

Day of the Dead Celebrations

The Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is an old holiday that was brought back to life as part of the Chicano Movement. It helped Mexican-Americans connect with their native heritage. Self Help Graphics played a big part in bringing this holiday back to California. The first celebration was in 1974, and today it's one of Los Angeles's biggest events.

Preparations usually start in August with workshops to make papel picado (paper banners), altars, and prints. On November 1, people, many with their faces painted like calaveras (skulls), walk down Cesar Chavez Avenue to Evergreen Cemetery. There, they set up altars for family members and offer food like pan de muerto (bread of the dead). Sometimes, a church service is held. Afterward, everyone returns to Self Help Graphics to see altars, ofrendas (offerings), and art. There are often music and theater performances.

The Day of the Dead is a time to remember heritage and tradition. It's also used to make artistic and political statements. For example, altars have been made to honor victims of war, highlighting how it affects the Latino community.

In 2009, the Day of the Dead celebration grew so big that it moved from the Self Help Graphics parking lot. It now takes place at the East Los Angeles Civic Center.

Self Help Graphics in the News

• September 2017 – When the government planned to end a program called DACA, Self-Help Graphics & Art worked with the National Day Laborer Organization Network. They made posters to help Mexican immigrants know what to do if they met immigration officials.
• April 2018 – Self Help Graphics & Art bought its main building at 1300 E. 1st St. in Boyle Heights. This big achievement means the organization will stay in East LA for future generations.
• September 2020 – The Latinx Arts Alliance was started. This group includes Self-Help Graphics & Art and four other art organizations in Los Angeles. Their goal is to make sure Latino arts get equal attention locally and nationally.
• June 2021 – Self Help Graphics & Art received a one million dollar donation from MacKenzie Scott. Soon after, they also got four million dollars from the State of California to renovate their building in Boyle Heights.
• April 2022 – After many years of raising money and involving the community, the organization began renovating its cultural center.