A hundred years of Latino art in Chicago will be showcased in a new online archive, funded by a $40,000 grant from the Chicago Community Trust to a national Latino research group based at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The Inter-University Program for Latino Research (IUPLR), a national consortium of 25 university-based Latino research centers, will establish a Chicago Latino artist directory dating back to the early 1900s that will include image galleries, biographies, artists’ statements and related website links. Users will be able to sort information by artist name, country of origin, gender, decade, art form or theme. The grant also will support panels and workshops led by Chicago-based artists at Latino Art Now!, the program’s national conference, April 7 – 9. “Artists, collectors, curators and scholars will benefit from the website as a valuable research and educational tool,” says Maria de los Angeles Torres, executive director of IUPLR. “The related conference programs offer a platform for local artists to share and discuss contemporary issues and influences around Latino art in urban spaces.” The Latino Art Now! conference, which is presented in collaboration with the Smithsonian Latino Center, will host events at UIC, the Chicago Cultural Center, the National Museum of Mexican Art, and the Puerto Rican Arts Alliance. “Spring of Latino Art,” a series featuring more than 60 community-based exhibitions and events related to the conference, will run from March through June at venues across the city.