Organization History
Casa de la Cultura Mexica, a Santa Clara County, California based group, was formed as a nonprofit organization in 1991 in order to preserve Latin-American culture, especially the elements of pre-Columbian culture which still exist. There is a large number of people in Santa Clara County who can still remember their roots in Mesoamerica and South America. Casa de la Cultura Mexica was formed in response to this memory.
Originally, the group was conceived and organized by a group of artists led by Manuel Viveros, a visual artist from Mexico. With performances by Latin American performances and the presentation of two film festivals, Mr. Viveros brought Latin American culture to this community. Ultimately, through artistic expression and through education, he wanted to break down the barriers among cultures and work toward integration of cultural differences.
By 1990, the mission of Casa de la Cultura Mexica had taken hold
in the community, and the organization was expanded to include
other artists whose origin spanned the South American countries.
In 1992, the artists created a corporation with the purpose of
cultural diversity education through the arts.
Events benefiting students and artists were presented.
Although still a small organization, there are now seven members of the Board. The original mission has expanded to include the many ethnic cultures in the county. There are three programs which include showcasing various artists and performers from numerous cultures; exhibiting films by ethnic filmakers and film which deal with multicultural topics; educating youth and the greater community about other cultures through learning about art.
In 1997, Casa de la Cultura Mexica was accepted as a member of the San Jose City Office of Cultural Affairs Incubator Program. This is a three year program which works with small nonprofit arts organizations in order to provide each with the tools it needs to become a strong and successful nonprofit organization. While working toward this program, Casa de la Cultura Mexica also is participating in the San Jose City Downtown Arts Series and is planning a Film Festival and Symposium addressing AIDS related issues.
