The galleries of Bogotá’s alternative art district San Felipe open their doors Saturday, from 11:00 am to 10:00 pm, with an initiative called San Felipe Open to showcase recent works by Colombian contemporary artists.
The 30 participating art spaces, including established galleries and open studios for emerging talent, will also host events that include film screenings and coffee tastings. All events are free to the public and a way the art district promotes not only a walkable circuit, but engages with a community of small business owners.
Artist Antonio Puri inaugurates the art day with the talk “I am an artist,” where visitors will be able to view works that draw on his many musical and geometric influences. Born 1966 in Chandigarh, India, Puri grew up in the Himalayas before studying at the Academy of Art in San Francisco and Coe College, Iowa, where he earned a law degree.
As with ARTBO Weekend in which San Felipe is an obligatory part of an art circuit that includes Bogotá’s Centro, La Macarena and Chapinero Norte, the gallery owners of this edgy, residential neighborhood have jumped the queue to begin promoting themselves early in the year, and an opportunity for people to buy works directly from artists. Booksellers Librería Adorno is hosting the exhibition Actos en Silencio by Karen Lamassonne and Liliana Vélez.
Talking about movies, It’s A Wrap (Calle 74A No.20C – 43) will screen two intensely dark features: El Páramo and All your Dead. And, as this art route is also dedicated to food, enjoy the innovative tastes of the neighborhood at Cafeteria, 4 Fieras, Vasto restaurant and pastry shop, Botero Burger Lab, Taqueria Panther and cooking workshop Hidden.
The San Felipe art district is located between Avenida Caracas and Carrera 24, and Calles 80 and 72.
