From White Cube to Cultural Nexus: Sustainability and Community-Driven Innovation in Latin American Galleries
Sustainability of gallery spaces through adapting the model to the community around them
Celeste Melgar
“The Latin American continent is a plurinational, pluriethnic, pluricultural and plurilinguistic entity which embraces almost 570 million inhabitants. Any attempt to understand its contemporary artistic manifestations must encompass such multidimensional diversity of experiences if it is not to succumb to the old exoticist and essentialist model based on the mistaken premise that Latin American unity and authenticity.”
- Iria Candela
It all started with my dissertation, as I focused my efforts in the initial step called figuring out how I could define the Art Ecosystem before I could write and research what composes it and what are things that would make it successful or volatile . I realized that the country I was focused on, Panamá, was not only my home country but also a magnificent case study. Demonstrating the shifts, changes, closures, success stories and developments are all part of the creation of an Arts Ecosystem as through these journeys galleries, artists, art enthusiasts and buyers were capable of understanding what is important to be sustainable and long lasting in the arts ecosystem of a Latin American country such as Panamá.
Once the dissertation was brought to an end, I felt it was much more of a beginning to understand how the term Art Ecosystem is specific in both definition and context to each country, region and culture. It was evident that the success of the galleries and art institutions in Panamá was based on the community, the celebration of culture and the country’s economic pulse. There were little to no white cube-like galleries found, the appeal wasn’t towards white walls, cold floors, and striking cool toned lights. Even when there was a close link to the white walled gallery, such as Diablo Rosso in Panamá, there is an importance in involving the community, even the people that commute past the gallery everyday. By making the gallery cover its entire entrance, walls and door be made out of inventing glass. Glass was precisely selected to be an accessible space where art could be looked at from the daily commuters, the benches in the park, the visitors walking in Casco Viejo and the art enthusiast seeking a new experience. Therefore, what is the trend I found through the analysis of the different galleries and art institutions in Panamá was the slight adjustments that each had made in order to create a sense of community within the gallery, either by supporting Panamanian artists, by hosting events, through education or through partnerships with foundations.
This then expands into the understanding of how Latin American galleries seek similar concepts, with a spin to the white cube like space other galleries in Latin America just like in Panamá are seeking to create a sense of community and support for what is local. Why is this the case? There is no straightforward answer as the assumption through research and differentiation is the way in which culture also affects how the Art Ecosystem is built, how people interact with art and what is the culture around learning and questioning the arts. Therefore as most of the countries in Latin America are still considered young countries there is still constant development on what makes for a sustainable art industry, which would allow for its varied
Sources
Everton Barreiro, “Latin American Art: Beyond the Fairs, Galleries, and Stereotypes,” Everton Barreiro, February 15, 2019, https://www.evertonbarreiro.com/articles/2019/2/15/latin-american-art-beyond-the-fairs-galleries-and-stereotypes.