Friday. Oct. 1. 1:00 pm Opening: Latino Bookstore ribbon-cutting. Corner of Brazos and Guadalupe St.
Oct. 1- Evening: Book readings beginning at 6:30 pm.
Guadalupe Latino Bookstore. Photo: Ricardo Romo
The bookstore and gift shop will then be open during regular business hours throughout the year to serve the surrounding community, the entire city and as a destination on stop for tourists from the region and beyond.
Who: The Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center
What: Opening of the GCAC Latino Book Store
Where: Historic Progreso Pharmacy Building, 1300 Guadalupe St. Parking will be located in the back of the Guadalupe Theater, 1301 Guadalupe Street, on Brazos St.
Why: The Guadalupe Latino Bookstore will address the book desert on the West Side of San Antonio and the lack of representation of Latino books in existing bookstores across the state and the country.
The Ribbon-Cutting will be live-streamed on the GCAC Facebook Page
The Guadalupe Latino Bookstore will feature curated titles by Texas Latino authors. Fall and winter programming will focus on Day of The Dead and Navidad/Holiday traditions and 2022 will kick off with the bookstore's monthly author series.
People from all over will be able to visit the Latino Bookstore and Gift shop to purchase signed copies of works by leading Latino authors. They can also gain insights into the art, history, and, our culture through these works which will complement the art exhibits, musical performances, and theatrical and folkloric presentations that have formed and will continue to form the legacy of the GCAC.
As Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center Executive Director Cristina Balli notes, "So many writers, visual artists, musicians, and filmmakers, have a long history with the Guadalupe. We want to celebrate that history and make it accessible to tourists, students, and families."
Tony Diaz, the bookstore's literary curator, was shaped by that same legacy. "I have a poster from 2001 when I participated in the Inter-American Book Fair, organized at the GCAC. I met so many writers with whom I've had the pleasure of continuing to work. We are familia. This bookstore is based on those connections, that legacy, that art. Even if folks don't see that right away, you feel the energy and excitement. I am thrilled that now we can help so many more people learn that and be part of that."
The bookstore is also built on the rich literary history of San Antonio. This legacy is honored with the appointment of a literary padrino Tomás Ybarra-Frausto, and a literary madrina Texas poet laureate Carmen Tafolla. According to Tafolla, "And when you get something from the new tiendita de Guadalupe Book Store you're not just buying a book, you're supporting a San Antonio-based cultural institution that's been at el corazón of the West Side for more than 38 years and has been the scene of cultural innovation for more than 40 years before that."
Public Contact
210.271.3151
info@guadalupeculturalarts.org