364+1
Afros beyond Candombe. Exhibit in Punto de Encuentro (Nov. 2011).
Three centuries ago the first African-descendants arrived in Uruguay. The harsh conditions of their daily life are known; only one day per year were they allowed to honor and celebrate their cultural heritage. Is it possible that today, as it happened so many years ago, we are reminded of the importance and influence of the African community in our society only the day of the llamadas?
364plus1 is a project that suggests a look into the space of the African-Uruguayan community at the beginning of the XXI century. Using the known symbols of the candombeas a starting point, which for many is their contact point with the community, 364plus1 proposes to widen the look beyond the obvious and question who is the person behind the character.
Audio Interviews
Gramillero | Jaime Esquivel | Empleado Municipal, Escritor y Compositor.
Drummer | César Alfonso Pintos | Municipal CIty Hall worker (retired).
Mamá Vieja (old mother) | Leopoldina Barboza | Empleada Doméstica (pensionista).
Escobero (stick holder) | Julio César Gonzalez | Empleado Dirección General de Registros (municipal employee).
Space, time, visibility. Martin and Daniel search for a combination of these three elements to share with us their link with the African-descendant community in Uruguay. They propose a simple double question, a game: what do we see when we look at a photograph and, even more important, what do we not see when we look at a photograph?
The authors invite us to participate in four brief visual instants, they integrate us into the space of the show and create for us a bridge by using the voices, so that we can appreciate the stories behind the history. Four spaces, four faces, four experiences that go beyond candombe.
Diego Vidart
Commission and solo exhibit commemorating the bicentenary of Uruguay. Martin Herrera Soler (photography) | Daniel Charlone Herrera (cultural management) | Belén Cirio (art direction).
Acknowledgements:
Alejandro Gortazar, Ministry of Education and Culture.
Grégoire Cheynet, Gallery Coordinator of Punto de Encuentro.
Carmen Orquet, UNESCO.
Dina, Alfonso, Gonzalito and Jaime, who opened the doors of the intimacy of their homes to be photographed, thereby transforming this idea into reality.