B-LA-M Festival: Xchanging Perspectives

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On June 28, 2024, at 6 pm, SomoS proudly opens the group exhibition Xchanging Perspectives, as part of the B-LA-M festival.  Artists from artspaces El Quinto Piso, based in Mexico City, and Artbug Gallery, based in Los Angeles, alongside artists from SomoS, will engage in a spirited artistic exchange. An artist talk will take place on the 29th at 7 pm and the exhibition will run until the 30th.

The B-LA-M festival commences in Berlin, with art spaces from Los Angeles and Mexico City gathering at 18 art spaces in Berlin for a 3-way cross-cultural artistic exchange. The artists arriving at SomoS are from Artbug, a Los Angeles-based gallery, and El Quinto Piso, a collective from Mexico City. They utilize various mediums, including painting on fabric, drawings on paper, video installations, and embroidery. The opportunity to exchange their art reinforces their global network, strengthening the connections between the three sister cities.

Artbug artists from Los Angeles, Chicome Itzcuintle Amatlapalli, David Serrano, and Carlos Rittner explore a wide array of intersecting themes such as queer Mesoamerican indigeneity and spirituality, metaphysics, heritage, and decolonization.

The El Quinto Piso collective from Mexico City offers a multifaceted approach through mostly small-scale works and a video piece. The collective engages with socio-cultural issues such as consumerism, decolonization, violence, and sustainability, expressed in a vibrant, dynamic style. 

In addition, the artists representing SomoS Arts in Berlin are the current Artists-in-Residence: Caroline Douville, Shoora Majedian, Rieko Tsuji, and Meghan Marie Malar. They work in painting, installation, and video, addressing identity, diaspora, female solidarity, alternative families, and decolonization, reflecting the city's international artistic discourse.

The event will commence on June 28th with the opening and performance at 6:00 pm. There will be a panel discussion on June 29th from 7:00 pm until the evening conclusion at 9:00 pm. The panel comprises Paula Bènard, Carlos Rittner, Caroline Douville, Meghan Marie Malar, Shoora Majedian, and Rieko Tsuji. The exhibition will be on view until 30th June.