During my time in Puerto Rico I got to visit Chocobar Cortes in Viejo San Juan and got a special tour of the current art exhibit featuring the collaborative effort with La Borinqueña creator Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez. As a part of its Guest Artists Program, Fundación Cortés has teamed up with the creator of the Afro- Latina Superhero for a solo exhibition celebrating Puerto- Rican culture and traditions while supporting the arts and education in PR. The alluring and inspiring exhibition will be up all year !
“It is with great pride and excitement that we share with you all that we are here in Puerto Rico right now to launch a new collaboration with Chocolate Cortés P.R. to further our philanthropic work on the island. Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez created an original story that will be reproduced in a comic strip series in four limited edition separate chocolate bars available now in Puerto Rico that he designed the wrappers for! Proceeds from this chocolate bar and merchandise will go towards Fundación Cortés as part of our La Borinqueña Grants Program. Special shout out to our creative team of artists Will Rosado and Christopher Sotomayor who worked with our studio to produce this amazing charitable project!”
With each purchase of a Cortés Chocolate bar you will be contributing part of the profit to the Cortés Foundation and you will get one of the four limited edition volumes of the La Borinqueña comic.
The educational and illuminating gallery was right above the restaurant where patrons can enjoy a delicious brunch. The staff was absolutely amazing, me and my friends loved the food, the drinks and the cozy atmosphere. There were so many fun menu options and chocolate variations like a tasty chocolate dip version of ketchup! I am super excited that there will be a new store coming to NYC, opening up in the Bronx later this summer/ early fall!!
New York, Activist and writer, Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez first debuted the original and iconic character back in 2016. I reviewed an advanced copy of the comic book La Borinqueña, which I had the pleasure of picking up at the El Puente Presents: La Borinqueña #1 release event. You can read my initial review here: A New Symbol of Hope: La Borinqueña #1
I was instantly drawn to the beautiful quality print, the vivid colors and the bold bright and beautiful cover art work. The regular edition features the Puerto-Rican flag (la bandera), and the variant cover(la herencia) features Puerto-Rican heritage, history and important political figures. Both covers embody the spirit of La Borinqueña.
La Borinqueña is more than just a superhero story, the protagonist, Marisol Rios De La Luz, who literally draws her powers from “elements and mysticism” found on the island of Puerto Rico, represents a symbol of hope. This iconic character was created in a time when Puerto Rico is in dire need of help. She is a hero that anyone can look up to and feel a connection to, and feel empowered like they can also make a difference. The imagery of not only the cover but throughout the entire comic invoke feelings of community, values, history and culture.
“Puerto-Rico will never give up, and neither will I.” –La Borinqueña
*La Borinqueña #1 debuted on December 17 and 18, 2016 at the Comic Fest (Aguada Con) 2016 in Puerto Rico.
Check out my post on Café Con Comics: Latinos in Comics, of an event (Somos Arte Café Con Comics) I attended curated by Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez.
@MrEdgardoNYC
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Written by Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez, edited by Matthew Barbot, illustrated by Emilio Lopez, Will Rosado, Eric Jimenez and introducing Sabrina Cintron with digital coloring by Juan Fernandez.Breakdowns by Emilio Lopez, William Rosado, and Gustavo Vazquez.Cover artwork by Ralph Anthony “Rags” Morales and Emilio Lopez with a collection of variant covers featuring the talents of Chris Batista, Chris Sotomayor, Emilio Lopez, Eric Jimenez, Felix Serrano, Gustavo Vazquez, Juan Fernandez, Ralph Anthony “Rags” Morales and Will Rosado.Pin up artwork by Sabrina Cintron, and Eric Jimenez.
http://www.laborinquena.somosarte.com
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