April 14, 2019 | Here and Now with Sandra Bookman, promoting the Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee street co-naming“The street naming of Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis is one of the most meaningful accomplishments in my career."
Minerva Diaz orchestrated the Harlem street co-naming of Ruby Dee Place and Ossie Davis Way at the northeast corner of 123rd Street and Saint Nicholas Avenue. Her friend and mentor, Cliff Frazier, had strong ties to the legendary couple. Minerva deliberately chose the corner that is home to the Dwyer Cultural Center, a place rooted in the shared history of Ossie, Ruby, and Cliff. The co-naming became her gift to him—a heartfelt tribute to a man who had done so much for his people and his community, but most especially, for Minerva herself.
Minerva Diaz
PRESS & SOCIAL MEDIA
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Women’s History Month | Gracie Mansion
A huge special thank you to the incredible creatives: Denise Silva-Dennis, Luisa Lopez Celada, Minerva Diaz, Julia Ingall, and Lennox Commissiong for your willingness, kindness, trust, dedication, and gratitude to display your remarkable works at Gracie Mansion.
Gracie Mansion · 2024
Lower East Side artist brings festive displays to her apartment building
Minerva Diaz is using paper, cardboard and scissors to create a festive look at her apartment building. She lives at NYCHA’s Riis Houses on the Lower East Side, where on the walls, ceilings and stairwells are birds, flowers, trees and now reindeer and a fireplace for the winter holidays.
Roger Clark , NY1 · 2023
From Community Installation to Abrons Arts Center
“Minerva transformed this hallway in Jacob Riis Houses into this incredible Winter Wonderland, completely made out of paper, and I just knew I had to bring that transformational spirit to the [Abrons] Art Center.”
Ali Rosa-Salas, Vice President of Visual and Performing Arts · 2023
Riis Artist Brightens the Halls & Brings the Community Together
When people step off the elevator onto the second floor at 1225 FDR Drive, they are transported into a colorful spring garden made of paper flowers, trees, and birds. The artwork decorating the hallway, walls, and ceiling in the Riis Houses was created by resident Minerva Diaz.
LaToya, NYCHA Journal, pictured left · 2023
WE❤️NYC Presents: DO-ER Series - Minerva Diaz
Her dedication to beautifying these communities not only enhances living environments but also uplifts residents' spirits. Diaz's love for art serves as a powerful catalyst for positive change, making her an invaluable contributor to the betterment of public housing in the city.
NYCHA Stories: Meet Artist Minerva Diaz
Artist Minerva, a resident of Jacob Riis Houses on the Lower East Side decided to transform her floor into a magnificent art installation one day. Since then, it has continued to grow and change with the seasons. This is Minerva's life's work - thank you for sharing your artwork with your neighbors and us!
Public Housing Community Fund · 2024
Remembering Cliff Frazier
Cliff Frazier, a man for all seasons and a life of purpose. In a life that was as inexhaustible as it was purposeful, it’s not easy to label Cliff Frazier. Eulogy published in the Beacon and Amsterdam News.
By Herb Boyd, Aliya Frazier, and Minerva Diaz · 2022
The Force of Ethics in Civil Rights
She [Minerva Diaz, pictured with Cliff Frazier and Ruby Dee] expressed gratitude to them and to Cliff Frazier, founder of DCC, who encouraged her 3-year effort to have streets co-named in their honor. She succeeded, and in April 2019, throngs gathered on the NE corner of West 123rd Street and Saint Nicholas Avenue—cheering as two historic streets were renamed: Ruby Dee Pl & Ossie Davis Way.
By Alice Bernstein · Oral History Project · 2019
Harlem Street Co-Naming Honoring Civil Rights Icons Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee
“The landscape of media changed because of that program (referring to Community Film Workshop Council),” said Minerva Diaz, executive director at the Dwyer Cultural Center. Minerva Diaz’s artwork is featured throughout the video clip. Pictured: Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee’s children holding the street signs honoring their parents.
By Alyssa Paolicelli, NY1 · 2019
Minerva Diaz Spearheads Harlem Street Co-Naming for Ossie Davis & Ruby Dee
“Three years ago, our executive director, Minerva Diaz, came to me with an idea about the street naming to honor my dear friends Ruby Dee & Ossie Davis,” Frazier said. “And after a long and tedious process, she got it done in late 2018.”
Amsterdam News · Cliff Frazier · 2019
Ms. Diaz’s “Postcards from Progress” Series Featured in Historic Exhibition
Timing the stamp exhibit to the recent opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C., organizers tapped Manhattan-based visual artist Minerva Diaz to be a part of the year-long exhibit. Diaz’s work is pictured in the background.
By Karen Roberts, The Journal News · 2017
Meeting Namibian President Hage Geingob
The delegation, which included Kwame and Sikolo Brathwaite, Dr. Shirley Smith, Cinque Brath, John Brathwaite, Dr. Leonard Jeffries, Dr. Georgina Falu, Daa'iya El-Sanusi, Joslin and Jelani Richards, Minerva Diaz, Cliff Frazier and Ademola Olugebefola, who posed the possibility of Namibia hosting a conference of NGOs.
By Herb Boyd, Amsterdam News · 2015
Tuskegee Airmen Dr. Roscoe C. Brown Signs “Tuskegee Eclipse”
A heartfelt moment occurred when [Tuskegee Airmen Dr. Roscoe] Brown ceremoniously placed his signature on a painting by Minerva Diaz called “Tuskegee Eclipse,” alongside the signatures of the other living Tuskegee Airmen.
by Yvonne Delaney Mitchell, Amsterdam News · 2014
Unveiling at the United Nations
Ms Diaz displayed one of her paintings, depicting a young girl reading a book of thank-you letters with a cover photo of Malala, the articulate Pakistani girl who was willing to give up her life for the right of girls to be educated.
Committee on Teaching About the United Nations · 2014
Youth Making a Difference: Past, Present and Future
Among young people of outstanding courage, we have to recognize Malala Yousafzai, a 15-year-old Pakistani girl, who stood up for the rights of women and girls to obtain an education, and have freedom and self-determination.
Centerpoint Now, World Council for Peoples of the United Nations · 2014
Working Together to Make a Difference
The Cosmos Revolution, inspired by Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba's 2009 UN address in Mexico City, was presented at a World Harmony event honoring the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki for their commitment to nuclear disarmament. A replica was later displayed at the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum.
Centerpoint Now,World Council for Peoples of the United Nations, 2013