NMPRAC Anniversary

Built in 1893, The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture was formerly the Humboldt Park Stable and Receptory building. It was designed by Chicago architectural firm Frommann & Jebsen, combining Queen Anne architecture with that of the Old German country house.

The building became a Chicago Landmark in 2008, after undergoing exterior renovations since 1998 with the goal of repurposing the building for the community. Chicago’s Puerto Rican community founded the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture (IPRAC) in 2000, and it was open to the public in 2009.

After the second floor was fully renovated, another gallery space was created, and administrative offices were added.

In 2012, IPRAC was named the latest of the City of Chicago’s Museums in the Park.

The name was changed to The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture in 2014.

On Día De Los Reyes (Epiphany), January 6, 1995, a portion of Division Street in Chicago was shut down in order to install the public art monuments now known as "Banderas" on Paseo Boricua (Puerto Rican Promenade) in Humboldt Park.

Paseo Boricua is a six-block portion of Division Street, marked by two large steel sculpture-reproductions of the Puerto Rican flag. Since 1995 it has become a leading center for Puerto Rican culture, food, business and politics in the United States. It is the only recognized Puerto Rican Neighborhood in the United States.

At the end of Paseo Boricua stands the building that is now known as The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture. Delineating this area of Chicago as a Puerto Rican Neighborhood paved the way for the creation of the only national museum focused on Puerto Rican arts and culture.

This logo was created to celebrate both the anniversary of the Banderas and the anniversary of the museum, displaying the meaningful link between the two.