Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery

 is a colonial-era cemetery located in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is the final resting place of many of Puerto Rico's most prominent natives and residents. Construction began in 1863 under the auspices of Ignacio Mascaro. The cemetery is located outside the walls of Fort San Felipe del Morro fortress, one of the island's most famous landmarks. The average height of the wall is 40 feet and the width ranges from 15 to 20 feet.^[1] It was named in honor of Saint Maria Magdalena de Pazzi.

According to Rafael Rodríguez, Chaplain and director of pastoral services at theUniversidad del Sagrado Corazón located in the Santurce district of the capital, the location of the cemetery is central to the Puerto Rican belief in the separation of death and life. Thecolonial Spanish government at the time construction of the cemetery commenced, viewed death with fear because it was a mystery. Therefore, they decided to build the cemetery to overlook the Atlantic Ocean to symbolize the spirit's journey to cross over to the afterlife.^[2]

El Pugatorio in Puerto Rico I have been granted an exhibition at Museo de las Americas http://www.museo.org/. In working towards this exhibition I have been given special permission from the Arch Diesis of Puerto Rico to La Iglesia San Jose, where images and iconography from Spain, concealed for over 500 years, have been revealed during its recent restoration. This museum is situated inside El Morro, the old military fort just outside Old San Juan. El Morro which has long represented the symbolic face of Puerto Rico and ‘the new world’, is also recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site and visited by over 2 million people a year. As well, I am in negotiations with Casa Contrafuertes, a gallery space in the oldest section of El Moro to do a solo, follow up show, to some of my work that was included in their most recent international arts festival: La Trienal Polygrafica de San Juan, Caribe y Latino Americano

Image theatre

Image theatre begins with movement to achieve a static result. Participants are asked to 'mold' and 'sculpt' their own bodies or those of others into individual representations of a particular situation, emotion, or idea, and then move into a group and re-form the images they have created to form a picture or 'image'. Boal's philosophy behind this form of theatre is that the body is the first and primary method of expression, and by using the body rather than speech, the normal 'blockades' and 'filters' of thought can be bypassed. Boal encourages the participants to immediately create an image rather than think about it, as thought would defeat the purpose of expressing raw, unrefined perceptions on an idea or issue. Generally, this form of theatre is also used to express oppressions.

Image theatre is also dialectic, as those who view the image created are also able to sculpt the bodies of the participants to portray their opinions on the issue. The participant is not allowed to speak while creating this art work. This process is repeated until a general consensus is found that the image represents how the group feels about the issue.

In keeping with Boal's philosophy of theatre for empowerment, the 'ideal image', in which the oppression is overthrown, may also be created. This is followed by an 'image of transition' between the reality of the oppression and the ideal image, to encourage insight into ways of overthrowing the oppression in reality.

The images may often also be dynamised: that is, the image is altered and changed to express different facets of the issue. This is done in three ways:

• First dynamisation: the participants move back to form the image, but simultaneously rather than separately. In this way, they are aware of each other, and of the image as a whole, rather than their own, individual pose.
• Second dynamisation: the participants alter their images slightly so that they interrelate with the other people on the stage. Their poses must relate to each other in a way that creates a single perspective that encompasses all views.
• Third dynamisation: The participants transform themselves from depicting the oppressed to posing as the oppressors. As participants are often victims of oppression, this vision is highly subjective, yet gives real insight into the attitudes of the participants.

Boal claims this form of theatre to be one of the most stimulating because of its ease of enactment and its remarkable capacity of portraying thought in a concrete form due to the absence of language idiom. Each word has a denotation common for all as well as a connotation that is unique for each individual. Each will have his own interpretation of "revolution", and to demonstrate such idea provides a clearer understanding of their intention in definition when shown rather than told. (Wardrip-Fruin, 344). For instance, one can "embrace" another in many ways (in a tight, harassing manner or a loose soft manner), however the word has the same definition of clasping another person in the arms.[2]

Altares - Muestra 2010 - Palacio Barolo

www.puntocubo.com.ar/altares/altares.html

Por razones de público conocimiento
el evento se pasa al
Domingo 31 de octubre
20:00hs