National Hispanic Heritage Month begins today; art and events in Los Angeles, Chicago and beyond

Today is the first day of National Hispanic Heritage Month, and since it runs through Oct. 15, you’ll have opportunities aplenty to celebrate it. Whether you’re staying local or plan to travel elsewhere in the U.S. during the next four weeks, you’ll find a wide range of events being held in honor of the culture and innumerable contributions of Latino Americans.

Countywide, our local libraries are hosting a number of special events, including a musical performance by the trio Guicho Cisneros y sus Dandys today at 6:30 p.m. at the East Los Angeles Library. In Avalon, Catalina Island, on Saturday, Sept. 27, at 1 p.m., the library will be teaching guests how to do the rumba flamenco. See the County of Los Angeles Public Library website for more information on these and other events.

In Hollywood, the annual Latino International Film Festival is running now, and ends Sept. 19. If you’re heading up to San Jose, California, stop into the annual International Mariachi Festival, on now through Sept. 28, 2008.

Farther afield, if you happen to be passing through Midway Airport in Chicago, or Love Field Airport in Dallas, look out for some striking art. Chicago-based nonprofit organization Latino Art Beat held a competition in May, asking high school students in five U.S. cities, including Chicago and Los Angeles, to submit pieces under the theme “What Hispanic Heritage and Culture Means to Me.” Some of the winning entries are on display at the airports.

Select art submissions by students are also on display at 21 Nordstrom stores around the country, including at Westside Pavilion in Los Angeles.

For other events across the country, see the list compiled by the Latino civil rights and advocacy organization National Council of la Raza.

– Susan Derby, Special to the Los Angeles Times

[Photo: 2008 winning submission to Latino Art Beat competition by Francisco Gabuardi, Miami; LatinoArtBeat.com]

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This entry was posted on Monday, September 15, 2008 at 1:00 pm by Susan Derby and is filed under Arts & Culture, California, Catalina Island, Family & Kids, Festival, Los Angeles, News, Tips & Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.