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Arte en contexto: Session #1
Experiences in Art Residencies, Politics of Exchange and Practices of the Trade
September 21, 2017, 4:00–6:00 pm

Centro de Arte Los Galpones
Galpón 17
29-11 Transversal 8
Caracas 1071, Miranda, Venezuela

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Fundación Cisneros/Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros invites artists and directors to the first session of Arte en contexto [Art in Context]: Experiences in Art Residencies: Politics of Exchange and Practices of the Trade, to share their experiences of the artistic residencies in which they have participated and/or are currently directing in different locations in Venezuela.

The session—the first of a series in which different topics pertinent to the field of art will be tackled—will be held on Thursday, September 21 from 4 to 6 p.m. in Galpón 17 of Centro de Arte Los Galpones. During the meeting, the invited organizers will tell us how these residencies were created, as well as describe the various models of management / self-management, operation and financing of each of these initiatives. In addition, we will analyze the results and insights of these modalities of artistic community, which by their nature tend to operate under reduced conditions of space and time. The artistic residencies also offer the possibility of activating projects and works on a smaller scale, whose processes generate real discussion and debate in the context of the field of art.

The meeting will be attended by the coordinators of the artistic residencies that operate in the metropolitan area of Caracas, to those research residences that are developed in excursion format, experiencing the practice in the workshop and their reflection on the aspects that problematize art.

As the artistic residency is an important part of the genealogy of the spheres of art, promoting a collaborative environment through accessible strategies of exchange and pedagogical interlocution with aspects of everyday life, we decided to call this meeting to encounter, discuss, and support the different initiatives that unfold, framed by the needs of work, study, and production in the artistic field.

Who is participating in the meeting?
Residencia artística El Avispero: El Avispero is a project secluded from the city, ideal for the development of proposals that require reflection and more introspective work. El Avispero aims to promote and stimulate the development of art in the region through cultural and intellectual exchange with artists from abroad.

La Macolla Creativa: A meeting place in La Pastora (in the heart of Caracas), La Macolla is an open community that relies on craft: painting, weaving, sculpting, producing images (graphic, photography, audiovisual). In 2016, La Macolla had seven residencies. Each week intensive work closed with an exhibition open to the public with an offering of cuisine inspired by the Caracas tradition.

La ONG: La Organización Nelson Garrido (ONG) is an independent cultural space where different activities related to art are combined. Its fundamental axis is photography and for this reason, since the year 2002, they have been training photographers through their workshops that operate in four annual cycles. At the same time, in their three exhibition halls, they continually exhibit the work of the artists who make or have been part of the space, serving as a sounding board for minorities and offering different approaches.

Taller Abierto: Located in Lechería, Anzoátegui state, Taller Abierto is a project that promotes the generation of artistic encounters wherein creative processes are produced and exhibited pertaining to the activity in the workshop. In Taller Abierto, interaction with the environment, and identification with local practices and artistic manifestations rooted in the Venezuelan east prevail.

Terra Gráfica: This independent initiative aims to encourage a group of artists to return to or get started in the graphic arts. Terra Gráfica plans excursions and short trips as the most suitable scenario to carry out field work with the commitment of a later production in the workshop.

International Residency Program MACZUL: The International Residency Program was created by the Museum of Contemporary Art of Zulia in Maracaibo. This residency allows an artist of any nationality to develop their work in the space of a month with the purpose of exposing it in the museum.

La Llama: The artist and cultural manager Luis Romero created and carried out La Llama Foundation from 2000 to 2004, holding an international workshop of artists with the participation of 10 local artists and 10 foreigners, 15 artist residences in Caracas and 5 artists residences in Port of Spain and Aruba