The Cultural Cnter of Spain in Costa Rica was the epicenter of a series of profound reflections on water, one of the most valuable and threatened common goods on our planet. The sixth edition of E•CO/24 was an international meeting of photography and visual narratives that arrived in Costa Rica, exploring the multiple dimensions of water through art.
Under the slogan “Water Stories,” this event brought together selected artists, through a broad international call, researchers, and activists from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Spain, Guatemala, Mexico, Venezuela, and Equatorial Guinea to share their studies and projects on the water crisis.
Through an exhibition, discussion panels, and conversations, the myths, issues, and solutions related to water were explored, inviting the public to reflect on their own role in water conservation.
The exhibition presented the results of the work process of the 11 artistic collectives, alongside prominent professionals from the sector, researchers, and creators from National Geographic Society Latin Arica. This exhibition adorned the Outdoor Photographic Gallery of the National Stadium (main entrance, Rohrmoser corner), created by the Ministry of Culture and Youth, the Costa Rican Institute of Sports and Recreation (ICODER), the Cultural Center of Spain, and the National Stadium, to bring art, education, and social awareness to as many people as possible. The inauguration was on Tuesday, December 3, and on Wednesday, December 4, more than 36,000 people saw it thanks to the concert by Christian Nodal and Marc Anthony at the National Stadium.
Additionally, these collectives participated in an artistic residency at the La Selva Biological Station of the Organization for Tropical Studies, where they immersed themselves in Costa Rican nature and deepened their connection with the theme of water, for the creation of future works and reflections.
The exhibition is an international collaboration as E•CO is an initiative of the VIST Foundation that receives support from the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation. (AECID). All this with the intention of joining the global commitment to sustainability linked to artistic creation. Also, E•CO has established itself as the largest gathering for visual production and creation in all of Ibero-America.
“E•CO/24 is not just an art exhibition, but a call to action.” We want the public to connect emotionally with water and feel inspired to take action to protect this essential common good for future generations. The E•CO/24 Exhibition is outdoors on the fences of the National Stadium of Costa Rica at the main entrance (northwest) in La Sabana, San José.
For more information, visit:
https://ccecr.org/evento/encuentro-de-colectivos-e%c2%b7co-24
Contact information:
Gisela Volá (AR) +54 9 11 5988-9974 [email protected]
Tobias Monte (AR) +54 9 11 3293-9645 [email protected]
[Social Media Link]:
https://www.instagram.com/vistprojects
https://www.instagram.com/cce_costarica
About VIST Projects
VIST is a non-profit foundation established in Latin America that is dedicated to creating and disseminating multiplatform content to research, design, and develop visual narratives on social and cultural themes, promoting a new way of reflecting on the current world.
It aims to contribute to the construction of an engaged society, with informed opinions and a spirit of collaborative participation, to generate new spaces for knowledge and reflection. Conducts research, content creation, management, and implementation of new communication strategies so that groups can raise their voices.
Seeks new perspectives to offer a more comprehensive view of social realities. It encourages the creation of photographic, videographic, sound, written, animation, interactive, and illustration projects on various themes. Creates collaborations with various knowledge centers, universities, NGOs, and governmental institutions. It disseminates its own content and that of other creators through websites, social media, and other digital platforms, installations in public spaces, and exhibition projects.
Its director, Claudi Carreras (ES), is an independent curator, editor, and cultural mobilizer, and has held multiple solo and group exhibitions that have traveled around the world to more than 50 cities across four continents. And the pedagogical director of E•CO, Gisela Vola (AR), is a photographer, educator, and co-founder of Sub Cooperativa de Fotógrafos, a project born in 2004 in Buenos Aires that worked on creating a collective identity, conducting visual research that was published in the press, exhibitions, and photobooks.
