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Battle of the Polls: Valencia to Face Cepeda in Second Round

By Richard Emblin - May 14, 2026

A new national survey suggests Colombia’s 2026 presidential race is shaping into a high-stakes runoff between Iván Cepeda and conservative rival Paloma Valencia, with the first round on May 31 favoring the left-wing senator, but the second round – on June 21 – projecting a narrow victory for the Centro Democratico candidate. The latest poll […]

OSHORTS, the growing presence at Cannes is part of a long-term internationalization strategy. Photo: Black Velvet

BOGOSHORTS Expands Global Audience at Cannes With Latin American Short Films

By Richard Emblin - May 13, 2026

The Bogotá Short Film Festival – BOGOSHORTS – is strengthening its international footprint at the 79th Cannes Film Festival with a major presence at the Short Film Corner | Rendez-vous Industry, positioning Colombian and regional filmmakers before one of the world’s most influential film markets. From May 13 to 24, this leading platforms for Latin […]

Bogotá Fashion Week Strengthens International Push for Colombia’s Designers

By Richard Emblin - May 12, 2026

Under a mirage of glowing escalators inside Bogotá’s Ágora Convention Center, the catwalks of Bogotá Fashion Week opened Tuesday with more than fabrics and silhouettes on display. Behind the runway lights lies a larger ambition: to turn Colombia’s capital into a regional fashion export hub and bring designers from Bogotá’s workshops and popular commercial districts […]

Colombia tributes political legacy of ex-VP Germán Vargas Lleras

By Richard Emblin - May 11, 2026

The departure of former Vice President Germán Vargas Lleras’s coffin from Bogotá’s Palacio de San Carlos on Monday morning blended state mourning with unmistakable political symbolism, as Colombia’s political elite gathered to bid farewell to one of the country’s most influential figures. His daughter, Clemencia Vargas Umaña, attended the ceremony accompanied by her father’s two […]

In Mud We Trust: Ruby Rumié's volcano portraits are on display until June 27 at the Nohra Haime Gallery in New York. Photo: Ruby Rumié.

From Cartagena to Chelsea: Ruby Rumié Brings ¿How Are the Children? to New York

By Richard Emblin - May 6, 2026

At Nohra Haime Gallery, in Manhattan’s white-walled Chelsea district, Cartagena-based artist Ruby Rumié is asking a deceptively simple question: How are the children? It is not a casual greeting, nor the sentimental title of a new exhibition. Instead, it draws from the Maasai expression “Kasserian Ingera,” a phrase that measures the wellbeing of an entire […]

Fabio Ochoa Vasco is the latest member of the ex-Medellín cartel to return to Colombia. Photo: AI generated.

Medellín Cartel’s Fabio Ochoa Vasco Returns to Colombia After U.S. Prison Term

By Richard Emblin - May 5, 2026

Fabio Enrique Ochoa Vasco, a former insider of the defunct Medellín Cartel, and once accused by Pablo Escobar of betrayal and marked for death, has quietly returned to Colombia after serving a prison sentence in the United States, drawing renewed attention to the discreet return of aging narcotics operatives to the country. Ochoa Vasco, known […]

Francis Alÿs at MAMU: A Global Portrait of Childhood Through Play

By Richard Emblin - April 29, 2026

At a time when children are increasingly indoors – absorbed by screens, separated from the street and distanced from the spontaneous rituals of neighborhood play – a new exhibition by the Banco de la República has launched at the Museo de Arte Miguel Urrutia (MAMU), and one that asks a deceptively simple question: what happened […]

Passengers are rescued from a municipal bus in Cauca, Colombia, during Saturday's terrorist attack on the Pan-American highway. Photo: X

U.S. Issues Strong “Do Not Travel” Advisory for Southwestern Colombia

By Richard Emblin - April 29, 2026

The United States has updated a “do not travel” warning for large parts of southwestern Colombia after a wave of terrorist attacks have left over 20 people dead, underscoring growing international concern over the country’s deteriorating security situation and prompting regional authorities to demand stronger support from the leftist government of President Gustavo Petro. The […]

Petro to meet Venezuela’s Delcy Rodríguez in Caracas, focus on border security

By Richard Emblin - April 24, 2026

Colombian President Gustavo Petro will meet Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodríguez in Caracas on Friday to address security challenges along the shared border, marking their first official encounter since Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S special forces on January 3, 2026. The meeting, to be held at the Miraflores presidential palace, is expected to center […]

Bogotá Mayor Carlos Fernando Galán accompanied by Metropolitan Police chief Brigadier General José Daniel Gualdrón.

Bogotá Mayor Galán calls for 8,000 more police after deadly film set attack

By Richard Emblin - April 21, 2026

Bogotá’s mayor has called for a major expansion of the city’s police force following a deadly knife attack on a television production set and a separate killing at a public transport station, as authorities warn of shifting patterns of urban crime in Colombia’s capital. Carlos Fernando Galán said the city requires at least 8,000 additional […]

Lufthansa and Qatar Airways Narrowly Avert Air Collision Over Bogotá

By Richard Emblin - April 20, 2026

A Qatar Airways cargo jet and a Lufthansa passenger plane came within an estimated 200 meters of each other on final approach to Bogotá on Sunday evening, in a near miss that could have resulted in a major airline catastrophe. The incident unfolded near El Dorado International Airport as both aircraft were being guided toward […]

ARTBO Weekend celebrates its 10th edition from April 16–19 with over 160 free activities across eight circuits in Bogotá.

ARTBO Weekend turns 10: Bogotá’s Art Circuits Come of Age

By Richard Emblin - April 16, 2026

ARTBO Weekend returns to Bogotá this week with a milestone worth noting – and a programme that suggests the event is no longer content with staying within its traditional comfort zones. Celebrating its tenth edition from April 16 to 19, the city-wide initiative organized by the Bogotá Chamber of Commerce (CCB) arrives bigger, more dispersed […]

Colombia to cull wild hippos as population threatens Magdalena River ecosystems

By Richard Emblin - April 15, 2026

Colombia will cull dozens of invasive hippopotamuses descended from animals illegally imported by Pablo Escobar, as authorities warn the rapidly growing population is endangering ecosystems and local communities. Environment Minister Irene Vélez Torres said the government has authorized the euthanasia of up to 80 animals as part of a broader strategy to control the herd, […]

At Museo Santa Clara, visual artist David Felipe Escobar reactivates colonial angelic iconography through queer embodiment. Photo: Museo Santa Clara

Bogotá’s Museo Santa Clara opens provocative exhibition exploring queer spirituality and colonial memory

By Richard Emblin - April 9, 2026

In the gilded stillness of one of Bogotá’s most striking colonial spaces, a new exhibition is quietly unsettling centuries-old certainties. Entonces llamó a un arcángel, the latest show by Colombian artist David Felipe Escobar, opens this week at the Museo Santa Clara, inviting visitors into a dialogue between baroque religious iconography and contemporary queer identities. […]

Influencer “Stink Bomb” on Avianca Flight Triggers Safety Alert Over Atlantic

By Richard Emblin - March 30, 2026

The stunt began, as so many do in the age of viral fame, driven by the need to provoke a reaction. At 35,000 feet above the Atlantic, inside the sealed cabin of an Avianca B-787 ‘Dreamliner’ en route from Bogotá to Madrid, passengers aboard flight AV46 were unwitting participants in a reckless influencer incident involving […]

The Hercules C-130 is a workhorse of the Colombia Air Force (FAC). Photo: FILE

Colombia probes aging Hercules crash as Petro calls aircraft “scrap”

By Richard Emblin - March 25, 2026

Colombian authorities are investigating whether mechanical failure, human error or excess weight caused the crash of a military C-130 aircraft that has now left at least 69 dead, as a political dispute intensifies over the condition of the country’s aging air fleet. The aircraft, a Lockheed C-130 Hercules operated by the Colombian Aerospace Force (FAC), […]