No Repetition

The current peace process in Colombia has established a set of parameters aimed at preventing a repeat of the causes and events of the last 50 years that led to the war.

By Museum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá - UNIMINUTO

V.F. (i)n* V.F. (i)n* (2015) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

After the silence

The silenced guns allow us to hear others; those who are by our side, but who may have been forgotten. They allow us to acknowledge that we are a collective of beings with our abilities and limitations, but all inhabitants of the same space, which we must transform into opportunities for all.

Rights Human Rights Human (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Fernando Arias

Armenia, Colombia. He currently divides his time between Bogotá and the Pacific coast of the Chocó province. Arias explores video, photography, installation, and action art. The recurring themes of his work include conflict, sexuality, religion, and politics.

Rights Human Rights Human (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Right Humans uses a play on words in its title to denote the ethical importance of human beings.

Rights Human by Fernando AriasMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

This sculpture by Arias dramatizes the sequence of an armed soldier slowly stripping off his uniform until he stands naked, and no different from any other human being.

Rights Human Rights Human (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Right Humans is a statement about freeing ourselves from hierarchies and ideologies in order to establish an equal, ethical, and transformative dialog.

Rights Human Rights Human (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Conflicts have ultimately united the nations that have endured them. The exhibition Forgetting Forbidden portrays events that remain triggers for violence, and Right Humans was part of that.

Exhibition: Forbidden To Forget (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Artist Luz María Sánchez (Siglo XXI) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Luz María Sánchez

Guadalajara, Jalisco. It deals with the theme of violence and combat between the ruling forces and organized crime in Mexico.

V.F. (i)n* (2015) by Luz María SánchezMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The work includes 20 audio recordings that highlight the danger facing citizens of modern-day Mexico who find themselves caught in the midst of shoot-outs.

Angles: Plastic artist Luz María Sánchez (2015) by Canal 44 U GuadalajaraMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with "Canal 44," University of Guadalajara.

V.F. (i)n* V.F. (i)n*Museum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

This MP3 player shaped like a pistol has become very popular with the youth of modern-day Mexico.

Interview Luz María Sánchez 'Forbidden to forget'. (2016) by Laura Angélica Gracia PérezMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with "Directo Bogotá"

V.F. (i)n* V.F. (i)n* (2015) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The public can interact with each of the pistol-shaped MP3 players, listening to audio recordings of shoot-outs in various cities across Mexico.

V.F. (i)n* V.F. (i)n* (2015) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Sánchez's work explores the political realm, with themes such as the Mexican diaspora, violence in the Americas, and failed nation-states.

Artist Omar Castañeda (Siglo XXI) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Omar Castañeda

Bogotá, Colombia. He currently lives in London. He has always worked with food as his raw material, and his obsessive research into foodstuffs has inspired his plastic creations. Castañeda has the ability to create an incredibly versatile experience with significant political, social, and cultural impact. As a visual artist, he likes to explore the unique aspects of cuisines from different parts of the world and share them in installations, objects, paintings, screen prints, and videos.

Land of hunger (2011) by Omar CastañedaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The main cause of the conflict in Colombia was land ownership.

Panela: the new gold of Colombia - Commentary of Omar Castañeda (2016) by Alejandro TrianaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Castañeda comments on his conceptual and creative process for the Museum of Contemporary Art's channel.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Panela, or unrefined cane sugar, is one of the most basic foods for the vast majority of the Colombian working class.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Part of Castañeda's installation for the exhibition Panela: the new gold of Colombia.

Omar Castañeda on NTN24 (2013) by Juan Carlos BejaranoMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with the NTN24 channel

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Event performed during the exhibition Panela: the new gold of Colombia in which bars of panela were exchanged for objects that were significant to workers at the UNIMINUTO university.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The UNIMINUTO workers highlight the nutritional and symbolic value of panela.

Panela Project (2014) by Omar CastañedaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The panela production process in Colombia: a video that formed part of the exhibition Panela: the new gold of Colombia.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Handing out "aguapanela" (sugar cane drink) to visitors at the exhibition.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

UNIMINUTO university workers proudly displaying their bars of panela.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Edible screen prints made from panela.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2011) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Panela takes on new symbolism—that of gold bars—based on its cultural and nutritional value. Its traditional production represents resistance against manufactured foods and multinational corporations.

The panela: the new gold of Colombia (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with the UNIMINUTO university channel

Artist Dario Ortiz (2010) by Dario OrtizMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Dario Ortiz

Ibagué, Tolima, Colombia. Renowned for his neo-realist compositions based on classical themes. This prominent painter, drawer, and engraver explores different formats and a variety of techniques to capture his visual language with great esthetic depth and impressive technical knowledge.

They threw their bodies into piles (2010) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

In the series The Apocryphal Verses of Dante, he presents a conciliatory vision of recent historical events and how they relate to The Divine Comedy.

Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses (2010) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The dramatic articulations of modern events link Ortiz's work with The Divine Comedy.

Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses (2010) by Leonardo Jose Del VacchioMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Comments made during the exhibition at the Maguncia Museum in Argentina.

Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses (2010) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Ortiz has the ability to introduce classical language into a contemporary context.

Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses (2010) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Ortiz is a great admirer of Italian Renaissance painting, and uses it as a pretext to present current themes, such as the massacres.

Eran las 5 de la Tarde (2001) by Dario OrtizMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The first victims of a conflict are always the young; they take the brunt of the orders, ideological manipulation, and bullets.

Dario Ortiz, Dante's Apocryphal Verses Referents (2010) by Dario OrtizMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The Colombian conflict is laden with the thousands of young people who have been murdered, tricked, and manipulated in order to perpetuate the war.

Dario Ortiz (2016) by MILENIOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

A conversation between Darío Ortiz and Avelina Lesper

Artist Diana Farfán (Siglo XXI) by Diana FarfánMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Diana Farfán

Bogotá, Colombia. Currently settled in the USA.

Known for her surrealist work with ceramics, she characterizes irony using toys, puppets, and dolls that allude to social and political situations. Her work links the human condition to magical realism to deepen its significance.

Colombian Circus (2012) by Diana FarfánMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Colombian Circus is a clear reference to the political manipulation suffered by Colombia throughout its history.

The articulated arms and hands, and the theatrical character popping out from the toy box, make us suspicious of its actions, words, and conduct.

Referents Colombian Circus (2012) by Diana FarfánMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The tragicomic character is akin to the constant dichotomy of a country teetering on the verge of despair and euphoria.

Diana Farfan, ceramic sculptor. (2016) by Diana Farfan Studios and Drew BaronMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with Diana Farfán in her studio.

Referents Referents (Siglo XXI) by Diana FarfánMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Circus characters are omnipresent in Farfán's work.

Referents Referents (Siglo XXI) by Diana FarfánMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Farfán's production is made up of metaphors referencing the violence in Colombia

Instructions on How to Fly (2011) by Diana FarfanMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Instructions for flying—the process of creating and producing a puppet.

Artist Niels Van Iperen (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Niels van Iperen

Holland. Known in the media as "the pop photographer," Van Iperen came to Bogotá having previously lived in Amsterdam, Los Angeles, and New York, and worked for magazines such as Rolling Stone, various record companies, and on publicity campaigns for big brands.

Never more, Photography - Gloria Astrid Ramírez (2016) by Niels Van IperenMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The photography project Never Again engages the mothers and relatives of the atrocious crime against the young men of Soacha, who were passed off as FARC soldiers.

Never more, Photography Never more, Photography - Gloria Astrid Ramírez (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Gloria Astrid Ramírez, one of the Soacha mothers, has taken action so that these events will never again be repeated.

Her son was one of the false positives. The photographs encapsulate the families' pain and their fight for justice, as they reveal the portraits and memories tattooed on their skin.

Exhibition Never again comment by Niels Van Iperen (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with Niels Van Iperen about the project Never Again.

Never more, Photography Never more, Photography (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

How do you deal with the loss of a loved one?
Where do you draw strength to fight against forgetting?

Never more, Photography Never more, Photography (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Love is an indelible mark, an antidote to despair and death.

Never more, Photography Never more, Photography (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Defying their sense of impotence against the powers that be, each one of these mothers clings to their memories, and has drawn strength from them.

Exhibition: Never again (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interview with the UNIMINUTO university channel.

Never more, Photography Never more, Photography (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Never Again is a statement; a symbol of the fight against injustice and neglect.

ArtistsLeidy Chávez y Fernando Pareja (Siglo XXI) by Leidy Chávez y Fernando ParejaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Lady Chávez and Fernando Pareja

Popayán, Colombia. This pair of artists use stroboscopic animation, sound, and recycled objects to stage models of social problems.

From the series toys locomotion (2011) by Leidy Chávez y Fernando ParejaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

The characters in this animation move their bodies to express euphoria and drama, taking part in urban protests, marches, strikes, and other civil demonstrations.

PROTEST 12 OF OCTOBER POPAYÁN - FERNANDO PAREJA & LEIDY CHAVEZ (2011) by praxinoscopioMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Faced with injustice, marginalization, internal conflict, abuse of power, and repeated arbitrary measures, social protest is a form of popular expression.

Locomoción de juguetes (2012) by Santiago Jiménez Vargas Diego Felipe RoaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Visit to the Toys Locomotion installation during its presentation at the "TESIS" project.

Referents Referents (Siglo XXI) by Leidy Chávez y Fernando ParejaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Chávez and Pareja continue their intriguing and creative designs of animated cycloramas combining light, sculpture, time, and social protest.

ArtBO 2012 - FERNANDO PAREJA & LEIDY CHAVEZ (2012) by praxinoscopioMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Referents Referents (Siglo XXI) by Leidy Chávez y Fernando ParejaMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Alongside their stroboscopic animation work, they also create anti-consumerism sculptures with a neo-pop character.

Artist Ericailcane (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Ericailcane

Belluno, Italy. Illustrator, sculptor, and urban artist. His large-scale murals take their references from children's book illustrations, but with implicit messages of social criticism in which the protagonists are always animals.

Exhibition, We are nothing Mural, Ericailcane in the framework of the exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Detail of the mural.

Exhibition, We are nothing Mural, Ericailcane in the framework of the exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

View of the mural work at dusk.

We are nothing (2017) by Ester Lange and Alice BettoloMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Time-lapse of the mural work.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Drawing stage and areas of color on the mural.

Apocalypse (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Apocalypse is a lithograph with implicit messages of social criticism. Its "semi-human" animals evoke fabled worlds, inviting the observer to enter into a dream.

Its metaphorical language warns of the destruction of the planet, our habitat, and the disproportionate exploitation of resources that will lead to the Apocalypse.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Work during the exhibition We Are Nothing.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Invitation poster for the exhibition.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Sculptural work during the exhibition We Are Nothing.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Interior mural created for the exhibition We Are Nothing.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Some of Ericailcane's work that was part of the exhibition We Are Nothing.

Exhibition, We are nothing Exhibition, We are nothing (2012) by EricailcaneMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Animal creation workshop for people with visual impairments.

Exhibition: Transversal Dialogues (2016) by Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Bogotá, MAC - UNIMINUTOMuseum of Contemporary Art Bogotá

Participation in the exhibition Transverse Dialogs.

Credits: Story

Curation, research, selection, and texts:
Gustavo A. Ortiz Serrano

Recording, database, documentation, and coordination:
Wilmar Tovar Leyva

Works in the permanent collection at the Museum of Contemporary Art Bogotá—a cultural entity of the Minuto de Dios University Corporation (UNIMINUTO).

2017

Artists' websites
http://www.masartemasaccion.org
http://luzmariasanchez.com
http://darioortizart.net
https://www.omarcastaneda.org
http://dianafarfan.com
http://www.niels.com/cd/
http://fernandoyleidy.wixsite.com/portafolio
http://www.ericailcane.org

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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