Minerva Diaz - Artist

Minerva Diaz, a proud native of Manhattan’s Lower East Side, is an internationally shown artist who uses her creative skills to raise awareness, educate, and uplift local and global communities. In 2009, she was designated the Representative to the United Nations, for the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolence, a position that continues to influence her art. She also serves on the Neighborhood Council of Trinity Church Wall Street.

From 2012 to 2022, Minerva played a pivotal role as the Executive Director of Harlem’s Dwyer Cultural Center, successfully averting its closure. Then, in 2019, due to the strong ties between Cliff Frazier, the founder of the center, and legendary figures Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, Minerva orchestrated the Harlem co-naming of Ruby Dee Place and Ossie Davis Way at the corner of the center. This gesture stood as a heartfelt tribute to her mentor and friend, Cliff Frazier, whose impact extended far and wide, touching the lives of countless individuals, including Minerva herself. 

Today, Minerva is dedicated to art-driven storytelling projects. At present, she's focused on curating an exhibition titled "American Skin: Patron Saints of Hollywood." Through her art, she pays homage to the legacy of Cliff Frazier and his esteemed colleagues, Sidney Poitier, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, and Harry Belafonte, to name a few. Their pioneering efforts in establishing film workshops across America following the 1969 riots, sparked by the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., serve as the focal point of her storytelling.  

Minerva’s portfolio features work signed by President Barack Obama, Misty Copeland, The Tuskegee Airmen, and other notable individuals. Her works have been showcased globally to encourage positive social change, including at the United Nations and the Atomic Bomb Museum in Nagasaki, Japan. 

Gracie Mansion

Before embarking on her creative journey, Minerva started her career in the trades industry. She joined the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades in the mid-'80s, where she worked on their pioneering all-female painters' crew. Later, she joined the International Union of Operating Engineers and held a position at WABC-TV ‘s NYC HQ until 1999. Following this, she transitioned into the auto industry, working as a road producer until the industry’s 2008 collapse.

Career Highlights:

2024: Exhibition at Gracie Mansion Conservancy in celebration of Women’s History.

2023: Minerva Diaz spearheaded the Queens Village Street co-naming of Gabriel Rice Way

2019: Prima Ballerina Misty Copeland signed Minerva Diaz’s original work titled “A Salute to Excellence.”

2019: Minerva Diaz spearheaded the Harlem Street co-naming of Ruby Dee Place and Ossie Davis Way.

2018: Invited speaker at the “Media for Social Impact Summit” at the United Nations alongside Cliff Frazier, Ndaba Mandela, grandson of Nelson Mandela, Kwame S. Brathwaite, son of famed American Photographer Kwame Brathwaite, and Madoka Yasuo Wakaiki, Daughter of Famed Japanese Photographer Yasuo Wakaiki.

2017: President Obama’s White House photographer, Pete Souza, signed Minerva Diaz’s work which captured the likeness of his famous photo “Hair Like Mine.”

2016: Commissioned by the New York Urban League, a piece featuring Mary McLeod Bethune for their Bethune Fellowship recipient awards.

2015: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signed Minerva Diaz’s original work titled; “Race to the Top.”

2015: Senator Bernie Sanders signed Minerva Diaz’s original work titled; “Birdie Sanders.”

2014: Minerva Diaz’s original work titled; “Malala” was unveiled at the United Nations during the 15th annual CTAUN Conference.

2014 / 2011: Minerva Diaz’s work has been published twice alongside articles by Cliff Frazier in Centerpoint Now, an international publication of the World Council of Peoples for the United Nations.

2014: Tuskegee Airman and a squadron commander of the 100th Fighter Squadron within the 332nd Fighter Group, Dr. Roscoe Brown, signed Minerva Diaz’s original work titled; “Tuskegee Eclipse.”

2013: Tuskegee Airmen, Dabney Montgomery (grounds crew), Lt. Col. (Ret) Floyd Carter, Lt. Col. (Ret) Clayton F. Lawrence, William Johnson (pilot), Wilfred R. Defour (grounds crew), signed Minerva Diaz’s original work titled; “Tuskegee Eclipse

2012: At the White House screening of George Lucas’ Red Tails, Tuskegee Airman Dabney Montgomery presented President Barack Obama with prints from Minerva Diaz’s “Postcards from Progress” series on her behalf.

2011: Minerva Diaz’s original work titled “Pacman” was unveiled in Washington D.C., at the Sixth Annual People's Ball, Celebrating the 105th year of Filipino migration to the United States and the 113 Anniversary of Philippine Independence.

2010: The unveiling of the Martin Luther King Jr. statue in Binghamton, NY, By Stan Watt, with Minerva Diaz’s name carved on a paver surrounding the base, a collaborative effort with the New York Metropolitan Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolence and the Broome County Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission.

2010: A reproduction of Minerva Diaz’s work titled; “Cosmos” permanently displayed at the Atomic Bomb Museum in Nagasaki, Japan.

2010: President Bill Clinton signed a reproduction of Minerva Diaz’s work title; “Race to the Top.”

2010: Commissioned by P.S. 254, the Rosa Parks School in Queens, NY, a piece featuring Rosa Parks, in recognition of its 2010 National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence status from the United States Department of Education.

2008: Then-Senator Barack Obama, during his 2008 presidential campaign, signed Minerva Diaz’s original work titled, “Dawn of A New Day.”