Hippopotamus: Enemy of the State

I began last night at a talk with Antonio Caro, the man who created this image, probably Colombia's most famous living artist, at the Museo de Arte Moderno. He is just the type of absurd intelligent fellow I like to listen to.

After some wine and an interesting Q & A, Caro gave out copies of his new art piece. Then I left with Juan to stop by 'La Oficina.' On the drive we went by 'Dallas' (a name coming from the American TV show) and 'OVNI' (which stands for 'Objeto volante no identificado,' UFO in English), two buildings that used to be owned by Pablo Escobar. Dallas has been bombed out and abandoned, and many believe it should remain that way, as a monument to that part of Colombia's history.

At La Oficina in El Poblado, Alberto Sierra, the curator, Roberto Luis Jaramillo, the historian who I was glad to have the opportunity to thank in person for connecting me with his friend Christian in Manizales, which gave me the chance to go horseback riding on the mountainside, Roderigo Callejas Vieira, a Colombian-Willie-Nelson-type painter, sculptor, retired professor from the Universidad Nacional, and two other men who left before I could talk more to them, were seated around a kitchen table, looking carefully through old photographs from the 30's and 40's from Medellin, and Roberto Luis, the man/encyclopedia, was explaining who everyone was in the photographs, and where they were, just by looking at them for the first time. They were preparing for the next exhibition at the gallery where these photographs are to be expanded and presented. I sat around drinking whiskey with this group of old men, eating almonds and figs, listening to stories from Colombia's history, accompanied by a plethora of dirty jokes. Looking at the faces of powerful men in an era referred to here as 'La Violencia' beginning in the late forties, I felt chills. There are also some very cool photographs taken using a rotating camera that present an entire panorama.

Then we walked around the excellent new gallery exhibition. A piece with 7000 toy soldiers lined up against a single toy hippopotamus, refers to an absurd incident when after Pablo Escobar was killed, his personal zoo was abandoned, and nobody wanted to enter his land. One hippo escaped in the search for food. This hippo, since it belonged to Pablo Escobar, was tracked down by the army and killed. Here is a picture of the group of soldiers celebrating their victory:
Another piece, has a wall covered in framed little plastic bags, and next to it, a device with a motor and a fan, and a plastic bag attached to it, replicating the action of huffing glue from these little plastic bags that is common among some poor children here. I found this piece very upsetting. The rhythm of the fan increasing and decreasing meshed with the repeated image of the bag was haunting, suffocating.

Monday morning I spent a couple hours in a meeting of thirty women at 'Mujeres Que Creen' to discuss properties of plants and the concept of 'Ecofeminism.' Me and Juan were the only males in the room. I sat next to Olga Patinio, an expert on plants who spent many years in the jungle in an apprenticeship with a native Shaman to learn what she knows. And it is clear in her delightful demeanor. She got up to speak; and she can control a room in an instant, turning from utterly entertaining to sincere and meditative on a dime. They've invited me to return as these talks continue, so I'm going to try to be there when my schedule abides.

I've been offered another job during my remaining time here, working for a group called 'Imagineros.' It would mean a substantial time commitment on a very specific schedule, such that I probably wouldn't be able to do some traveling I was thinking about doing. The project is funded by the Alcaldia, the city government, so it might be a really great opportunity. Just yesterday afternoon I was getting details on the six day jungle trek I can take, and I really would love to attend the International Theatre Festival in Manizales at the end of October. But it looks like if I take this job, I wouldn't be able to do either. Colombia, you tease!