By The Star Staff
The Institute of Puerto Rican Culture (ICP) has announced the programming for its traditional Handicraft and Plastic Arts Fair as part of the San Sebastián Street Festival.
Activities will begin this Thursday at the ICP headquarters and the inner courtyard of the Ballajá headquarters, both located in the Ballajá Cultural District of Old San Juan. The latest edition of the fair will honor the career of artisan Katherine Guzmán and will feature a diverse program with notable female participation, including musical performances by Fabiola Méndez, Fabiola Muñoz, Mahya Veray, Maribel Delgado, Machas Cabrías, Versos de Mujer and Victoria Sanabria, among others.
“At the Handicraft and Plastic Arts Fair of the Puerto Rican Institute of Culture, which is part of the San Sebastián Street Festival tradition, we welcome hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans and tourists from around the world who are eager to learn about the work of our artisans, craftswomen, and visual artists,” ICP Executive Director Carlos Ruiz said. “Our fair is the heart of the San Sebastián Street Festival, which has transformed from a small religious celebration into the largest cultural festival in the Caribbean. We hope you enjoy our diverse program that reaffirms our commitment to Puerto Rican culture and traditions, and this year we anticipate outstanding female participation across all areas.”
More than 525 cultural resources will be present during the four days of events, including artisans, visual artists, creative entrepreneurs, musical resources and educational institutions. In addition to crafts and visual arts, attendees will enjoy musical performances, exhibitions, workshops, and activities for children and young people, a.m.ong other cultural experiences. There will also be a varied musical offering featuring genres such as bomba, plena, salsa, trova, rock, and popular Puerto Rican music on stages at the ICP headquarters and the Ballajá Barracks in Old San Juan.
The fair will kick off at noon on Thursday in the inner courtyard of the Ballajá Barracks. Performances begin at 1 p.m. with trova music by Ventana a la Cultura, followed by the Puerto Rico Police Bureau Band. At 3 p.m., the Plenerxs Meeting will take place, and at 4 p.m., the band and flag bearers of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) Cayey Campus will perform. The day will conclude with a presentation by renowned cuatrista and troubadour Irving Santiago at 5 p.m.
From Friday to Sunday, activities will run from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at both the ICP headquarters and the Ballajá Barracks. During this time, the ICP headquarters will host Cine ICP, screening special productions that have received Emmy Awards: “Up and Down: The History of the San Sebastián Street Festivals” (2024), “4th Plenazo from Trastalleres to Trastalleres” (2023), and “My San Juan with Hermes Croatto” (2021). Additionally, videos of “Promesas de Reyes” (2023), “Perfiles Artesanales” (2023), and “4th Plenazo from Trastalleres to Trastalleres” (2022) will be shown. Visitors can also enter the headquarters gallery for free to enjoy the exhibition “Ramón López: A Universe of Illuminations” and the “Retrospective Room: Poli/Graphics of Puerto Rico.”
On Friday, music at La Sede will begin at noon with singer-songwriter La Cotto. At 2:30 p.m., Jaimy’s Jibaro Collective will perform, followed by Julio César Sanabria at 4 p.m. Los Chinchillos del Caribe, known for their fusion of cumbia, rock, electronic, and reggae sounds, will close the stage at 5 p.m.
Meanwhile, on the same day in the inner courtyard of the Ballajá Barracks, music will start at 11 a.m. with the UPR Utuado Campus Choir. The celebration continues at 12:30 p.m. with the Tuna of the UPR Río Piedras Campus, followed by the Marching Band of the UPR Humacao Campus at 1 p.m. Majestad Negra will perform at 3 p.m., and at 4:30 p.m., the National Troubadour 2025 Guersom Báez will take the stage, concluding the day with music by Onda Moderna at 5:30 p.m.
On Saturday, a petate demonstration workshop will be held at the ICP headquarters at 11:30 a.m., followed by a Kamishibai workshop by Circo Teatro Bandada at 12:30 p.m. The musical performances will start with LuisGa Núñez and Sonoridad at 1:30 p.m., followed by the circus show by Chicle. At 2:30 p.m., Las Vecinas will tour the Ballajá neighborhood, and the petate demonstration workshop will be repeated at 3 p.m., followed by the Kamishibai show. The day will feature International Dub ambassadors at 3:30 p.m., Plenéalo at 4:30 p.m., and will close with the Circo group at 5:30 p.m.
On the same Saturday, in the inner courtyard of the Cuartel de Ballajá, the cultural festival will begin.
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