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Mal Paso (y otros senderos)

mal_paso

Santiago Montoya 
Espacio El Dorado
October 2017 – December 2017

Mal Paso (y otros senderos) [Mal Paso and other routes] is a three floor exhibition curated by José Luis Falconi presenting works from Santiago Montoya that explore the myths surrounding “El Paso del Quindio”. An arduous but strategic step on the route that connects Bogotá with Popayán and other major cities of the western central region of the country, the Quindío path was originally used by indigenous communities, and maintained by Spanish conquistadors who crossed the region in look for the gold of the Quimbayas.

Surrounded by a cumulous of fables and myths since very early on, this region secured a particular place in the Colombian imagination, and for the last two hundred years has become a near perfect metaphor for the challenges and potential of the nascent republic. It represents both the intractability of the terrain and the Edenic and fertile ecosystems on which Colombia has been established. In other words, the “Paso” is perhaps the most definitive visual metaphor for the curse of natural riches which Colombia has been dealing with since its inception. 

MAL PASO (y otros senderos)

For all these reasons, it should not come as a surprise that it serves as the foundational metaphor for artist Santiago Montoya’s first exhibit in his native Colombia in over a decade. He has structured his artistic practice on the exploration of the value behind monetary transactions and cash itself. In that sense, as in his previous works, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) is also an exploration into the inherent fiction behind what one might find valuable.

Displayed as three major installations across the three floors of the El Dorado building, each reinterpreting the experience of crossing a dubious path to riches and fortune, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) aims to make its spectator question and reflect on the shortcomings and illusions of the Colombian national project. 

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Choreographed as an ascension out of hardship into a state of suspect grace and fortune, the show consists of three interlocking site-specific pieces —one on each floor—which, as stated, reinterpret the crossing of the “Paso del Quindío.” In this sense, the exhibition asks its viewer to inhabit and traverse the strange space opened by the critical distance between dreams of wealth and prosperity and the realities that their dreamers inhabit.

More info

Installation Views

Selected Reviews

H.6.4_foto

“Mal paso y otros senderos is a three-story installation by Santiago Montoya at the Espacio El Dorado gallery. The artist works a lot from the idea of capital, from the idea of money, from the currency of the object. In this exhibition, he creates an imaginarium from the landscape, specifically from a place called “El Paso”, located in Quindío, which has large cocoa crops.” Stopart Online Magazine 

“What I appreciate about this exhibition is that it fills me with questions, because lately recurring themes such as mining, violence, drug trafficking and politics have been postulated in local art; appealing to a social conscience or complaint. I think that there are several contradictions here, not in all cases of course, but in those of the artists who have found in these events a theme to use to use as an argument that supports a production of images, which perhaps does not have nothing to do with the phenomenon they want to deal with. ”  Luisa Roa,  PPC

“Contrary to common belief, Colombia is a country without landscapes. The country might be plagued by riveting natural scenery, but this has yet to be transformed into recognizable national landscapes.” José Luis Falconi, Espacio El Dorado

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Mal Paso (y otros senderos)
mal_paso
Santiago Montoya 
Espacio El Dorado
October 2017 – December 2017

Mal Paso (y otros senderos) [Mal Paso and other routes] is a three floor exhibition curated by José Luis Falconi presenting works from Santiago Montoya that explore the myths surrounding “El Paso del Quindio”. An arduous but strategic step on the route that connects Bogotá with Popayán and other major cities of the western central region of the country, the Quindío path was originally used by indigenous communities, and maintained by Spanish conquistadors who crossed the region in look for the gold of the Quimbayas.

Surrounded by a cumulous of fables and myths since very early on, this region secured a particular place in the Colombian imagination, and for the last two hundred years has become a near perfect metaphor for the challenges and potential of the nascent republic. It represents both the intractability of the terrain and the Edenic and fertile ecosystems on which Colombia has been established. In other words, the “Paso” is perhaps the most definitive visual metaphor for the curse of natural riches which Colombia has been dealing with since its inception. 

Installation Views
MAL PASO (y otros senderos)

For all these reasons, it should not come as a surprise that it serves as the foundational metaphor for artist Santiago Montoya’s first exhibit in his native Colombia in over a decade. He has structured his artistic practice on the exploration of the value behind monetary transactions and cash itself. In that sense, as in his previous works, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) is also an exploration into the inherent fiction behind what one might find valuable.

Displayed as three major installations across the three floors of the El Dorado building, each reinterpreting the experience of crossing a dubious path to riches and fortune, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) aims to make its spectator question and reflect on the shortcomings and illusions of the Colombian national project. 

Choreographed as an ascension out of hardship into a state of suspect grace and fortune, the show consists of three interlocking site-specific pieces —one on each floor—which, as stated, reinterpret the crossing of the “Paso del Quindío.” In this sense, the exhibition asks its viewer to inhabit and traverse the strange space opened by the critical distance between dreams of wealth and prosperity and the realities that their dreamers inhabit.

More info

FACHADA--3
Selected Reviews
H.6.4_foto

“Mal paso y otros senderos is a three-story installation by Santiago Montoya at the Espacio El Dorado gallery. The artist works a lot from the idea of capital, from the idea of money, from the currency of the object. In this exhibition, he creates an imaginarium from the landscape, specifically from a place called “El Paso”, located in Quindío, which has large cocoa crops.” Stopart Online Magazine 

“What I appreciate about this exhibition is that it fills me with questions, because lately recurring themes such as mining, violence, drug trafficking and politics have been postulated in local art; appealing to a social conscience or complaint. I think that there are several contradictions here, not in all cases of course, but in those of the artists who have found in these events a theme to use to use as an argument that supports a production of images, which perhaps does not have nothing to do with the phenomenon they want to deal with. ”  Luisa Roa,  PPC

“Contrary to common belief, Colombia is a country without landscapes. The country might be plagued by riveting natural scenery, but this has yet to be transformed into recognizable national landscapes.” José Luis Falconi, Espacio El Dorado

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Mal Paso (y otros senderos)

Santiago Montoya
Espacio El Dorado
October 2017 – December 2017

Mal Paso (y otros senderos) [Mal Paso and other routes] is a three floor exhibition curated by José Luis Falconi presenting works from Santiago Montoya that explore the myths surrounding “El Paso del Quindio”. An arduous but strategic step on the route that connects Bogotá with Popayán and other major cities of the western central region of the country, the Quindío path was originally used by indigenous communities, and maintained by Spanish conquistadors who crossed the region in look for the gold of the Quimbayas.

Surrounded by a cumulous of fables and myths since very early on, this region secured a particular place in the Colombian imagination, and for the last two hundred years has become a near perfect metaphor for the challenges and potential of the nascent republic. It represents both the intractability of the terrain and the Edenic and fertile ecosystems on which Colombia has been established. In other words, the “Paso” is perhaps the most definitive visual metaphor for the curse of natural riches which Colombia has been dealing with since its inception. 

For all these reasons, it should not come as a surprise that it serves as the foundational metaphor for artist Santiago Montoya’s first exhibit in his native Colombia in over a decade. He has structured his artistic practice on the exploration of the value behind monetary transactions and cash itself. In that sense, as in his previous works, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) is also an exploration into the inherent fiction behind what one might find valuable.

Displayed as three major installations across the three floors of the El Dorado building, each reinterpreting the experience of crossing a dubious path to riches and fortune, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) aims to make its spectator question and reflect on the shortcomings and illusions of the Colombian national project. 

Choreographed as an ascension out of hardship into a state of suspect grace and fortune, the show consists of three interlocking site-specific pieces —one on each floor—which, as stated, reinterpret the crossing of the “Paso del Quindío.” In this sense, the exhibition asks its viewer to inhabit and traverse the strange space opened by the critical distance between dreams of wealth and prosperity and the realities that their dreamers inhabit.

More info

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Mal Paso (y otros senderos)

Santiago Montoya
Espacio El Dorado
October 2017 – December 2017

Mal Paso (y otros senderos) [Mal Paso and other routes] is a three floor exhibition curated by José Luis Falconi presenting works from Santiago Montoya that explore the myths surrounding “El Paso del Quindio”. An arduous but strategic step on the route that connects Bogotá with Popayán and other major cities of the western central region of the country, the Quindío path was originally used by indigenous communities, and maintained by Spanish conquistadors who crossed the region in look for the gold of the Quimbayas.

Surrounded by a cumulous of fables and myths since very early on, this region secured a particular place in the Colombian imagination, and for the last two hundred years has become a near perfect metaphor for the challenges and potential of the nascent republic. It represents both the intractability of the terrain and the Edenic and fertile ecosystems on which Colombia has been established. In other words, the “Paso” is perhaps the most definitive visual metaphor for the curse of natural riches which Colombia has been dealing with since its inception. 

For all these reasons, it should not come as a surprise that it serves as the foundational metaphor for artist Santiago Montoya’s first exhibit in his native Colombia in over a decade. He has structured his artistic practice on the exploration of the value behind monetary transactions and cash itself. In that sense, as in his previous works, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) is also an exploration into the inherent fiction behind what one might find valuable.

Displayed as three major installations across the three floors of the El Dorado building, each reinterpreting the experience of crossing a dubious path to riches and fortune, Mal Paso (y otros senderos) aims to make its spectator question and reflect on the shortcomings and illusions of the Colombian national project. 

Choreographed as an ascension out of hardship into a state of suspect grace and fortune, the show consists of three interlocking site-specific pieces —one on each floor—which, as stated, reinterpret the crossing of the “Paso del Quindío.” In this sense, the exhibition asks its viewer to inhabit and traverse the strange space opened by the critical distance between dreams of wealth and prosperity and the realities that their dreamers inhabit.

More info