Curatorial & Educational > Educational Projects for Fundacion Paiz Para Las Artes
Educational Projects for Fundacion Paiz Para Las Artes
Coordinator & Content Curator.
Laboratorio de Arte Contemporáneo & Programa de Agentes Culturales
Between 2015 and 2017, I spearheaded two significant educational projects for Fundación Paiz para las Artes, designed to support more profound engagement with contemporary art and cultural practices in Guatemala. One of these initiatives was the Laboratorio de Arte Contemporáneo, a program that introduced young artists to contemporary art practices and taught them the methodologies of artistic research to inspire experimentation and production. Over the course of a year, Fundación Paiz provided these artists with studio space to develop their work, supported by the mentorship of five dedicated teachers. The program also included visits from local and international curators and artists, enriching the learning experience with diverse perspectives. This initiative was closely intertwined with the Bienal de Arte Paiz de Guatemala, offering participants a platform that connected them to a broader artistic dialogue.
The second program, Programa de Agentes Culturales, was similarly integrated with the Bienal de Arte Paiz and focused on training individuals passionate about art and culture. This program emphasized contemporary art methodologies, teaching participants to engage with audiences, conduct research, write effectively, think critically, and develop institutional critiques. Both programs were selective, curating small groups of participants based on their talent, dedication, and aspirations to contribute meaningfully to Guatemalan cultural life. Through these educational efforts, I aimed to create spaces that empowered artists and cultural agents to expand their practice and influence within the art community.
Laboratorio de Arte Contemporáneo
Diploma Course Program focusing on Visual Arts and Productive Creation from Artistic Research.
September 2016–June 2017. Fundación Paiz, Guatemala.
Mentors: Gabriel Rodríguez, Sandra Monterroso and Renato Osoy
Designed and Coordinated by Renato Osoy
Participants: Ricardo Alejos, Nathalie Béard, Yelena Chávez, Mario Alberto López, Cecilia Porras Sáenz, Fredy Rangel, Andrés Rodríguez Decena, Luis Soto, Patricia Urrutia
Intensive formative-educational program for artists, with a focus on experimentation and the development of a research method for the production of art. Participants were given a shared space for developing artistic processes and experiments. The program also featured guest visits to artist studios, as well as guest lecturers and visitors from the local and international art scene, ranging from legendary artists to curators based abroad, providing participants with a broad range of references in the medium of contemporary art. The program concluded with a group exhibition showcasing the participants’ results.
Final exhibition at Arte Centro Paiz, Guatemala City
June 27–July 25, 2017.
With this exhibition, the nine months of the Diploma Program of Contemporary Art Laboratory at ArteCentro come to an end. This laboratory is a collaborative project between artists, artists-mentors, figurants, educators and participants of the local art scene in an institutional-experimental context. Each artist has found a different way of approaching content and materials through experimental essays and research processes.
Programa de Agentes Culturales
September 2015–June 2016. Fundación Paiz, Guatemala.
Mentors: Renato Osoy, Camila Fernández, Hellen Ascoli, José Angel del Valle, Gabriel Rodríguez, Rosina Cazali, Martín Fernández, Luisa González-Reiche
Designed and Coordinated by Renato Osoy
Participants: Álvaro Iván Beber García, Christopher Torres-Ticas, Julio César Paniagua Velásquez, Josseline Suzzette Pinto Trejo, José Enrique Oquendo Taracena, Juan Pablo González de León, Maria Belén García Aldana, María Gabriela Samayoa Flores, Mario Alberto López Cruz, Patricia María Urrutia Gálvez
The "Cultural Agency and Artistic Research" Program proposes training aimed at committed individuals. Subjects that consider themselves critical thinkers and creative makers. The program seeks to train them as artistic researchers and agents of change in the field of Visual Arts. In essence, the “Cultural Agency and Artistic Research” project trains its participants both in modes of operability and agency, as well as in those of perception, reflection and reference on their respective contexts. An intensive one-year program intertwining with the Paiz Art Biennial event, offering a formative-educational concept that articulates a polymorphic and multicontextual vision of the cultural in the field of contemporary art.
*A publication of the research texts of each participant was published at the conclusion of the program. A symposium was also held, in which each participant could expand on the process of their research.
Symposia: Un Evento en el Museo, un Museo en el EventoSeptember 2015–June 2016. Fundación Paiz, Guatemala.
Museo de Arte Moderno de Guatemala, Guatemala City
August 20, 2012
In 2012, I conceived and articulated “Un Evento en el Museo, Un Museo en el Evento” (An Event in the Museum, A Museum in the Event), a participatory event held at the Museo de Arte Moderno de Guatemala in Guatemala City. This event was born from a critical dialogue surrounding the lack of institutional spaces supporting contemporary art in Guatemala. At the time, there was an expectation for this modern art museum to step into the role of showcasing and nurturing contemporary art despite its primary focus being modern art. Initially, the museum was hesitant to adopt this role. Still, I managed to persuade the director at the time, Architect Jose Mario Maza, to grant us a whole day for contemporary artists to engage with the space in unprecedented ways.
For this event, the museum opened its doors to rising contemporary artists, allowing them to take over the space for an entire day of art-related activities. The program featured a series of interventions, performances, and lectures that encouraged artists, theorists, and critics to reflect on pressing issues within global and local contemporary art practices. Discussions addressed what a museum's role should be, both in the present and moving forward, and how the Museo de Arte Moderno de Guatemala could better serve the artistic community. This one-day event became a vital platform for connection, critical thinking, and exploration of how institutions can respond to the evolving landscape of contemporary art in Guatemala.
Site specific works by:
Stefan Benchoam
Byron Mármol
Proyectos Ultravioleta
El BIP (Buró de Intervenciones Públicas)
Eny Roland, performance-portraits
Alejandro Marre, reading-performance
Alejandro España, documentation-video art
Andrea Barreda and Astrid Morales (assistants), documentation and stream
Lectures:
Emiliano Valdés: El arte, Espacios de agencia y activismo
Mario Santizo: Estrategias artísticas
Branly López: La descolonización del pensamiento
Silvia Herrera: Modernismo / actualidad
Rosina Cazali: Relatoria
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