ESCENA. Revista de las artes

Cultural Policy and Art Markets. The Festival de las Artes as a Project of the Costa Rican State (1989-2017)

Mario Fernández Picado — 2025-01-31

Introduction: The Festival de las Artes has clearly established fundamental principles but has experienced significant instability in its organization. Objective: It analyzes the process of institutionalization of the Festival de las Artes from four perspectives: operations, programming, artistic trends, and budgets. Methods: It utilizes regulations, bylaws, institutional reports, newspaper articles, and journals to construct discussions, identify key actors, and illustrate trends within the festival. Results: The aim is to identify the actors involved in shaping the project and the changes imposed, as well as to delineate the trends in programming and artistic expression, alongside budgetary considerations. Conclusions: The Festival de las Artes, as a cultural initiative of the State, represents an institution subject to transformation influenced by the interests and decisions of specific historical figures; furthermore, this initiative has fostered an art market, as the Costa Rican State established a cultural policy that supported its development.

For Other Possible Arrangements: Resonances Between Institutional Analysis and Urban Intervention

Lucas Brito Lago — 2025-01-31

Introduction: Discussions about the idea of urban intervention in the artistic context refer to a way of naming certain artistic practices that take place in the context of the city. Objective: In this paper, we intend to reflect on experiments in the context of curation and the practice of urban interventions through the resonance of these practices with concepts from a coherence field of institutional analysis. Methods: To do this, we use three operational concepts from the field of coherence of institutional analysis (intervention, crossing, and arrangement) to cross with the curatorial experiences of Conquista Ruas, a performing arts festival in the city, and an urban intervention, Praia do Suiço, carried out by us in the context of this festival. Results: From this intersection, we can recognize, outline, and debate certain operations that range from the festival’s collective organization modes to the collective agency of urban issues, based on intervention. Conclusions: In view of this, we found that the rapprochement between these fields can be fertile for the recognition of procedural and multiple dimensions that resonate between artistic practices, the city, and other possibilities of collective arrangements.

Pottery from Guaitil and San Vicente, Costa Rica. Expression of a Folk Art

Fernando Camacho Mora — 2025-01-31

Introduction: This paper examines the ceramic design in Guaitil and San Vicente, Costa Rica, with the purpose of exploring this folk art from the perspectives of Aesthetics and Political Philosophy. Objective: It analyzes this folk art in the ceramic production of these communities from Guanacaste by studying three aspects: the ceramist’s training, the relationship with technology, and the role of the market. Methods: The ethnographic method and the technique of open conversations were used to collect qualitative data from local ceramists. Results: A tension was identified between the economic need to commercialize tradition and local resistance to external criteria. Although the communities have adapted their art to market demands, their lack of creative autonomy persists. Conclusions: Folk art in both regions is influenced by external pressures, lacking a critical stance. The need for governmental support is highlighted to promote a more autonomous form of art, free from external limitations, while new questions arise regarding the relationship between folk art, the market, and the equity in its commercial projection.

The Figure of an Indigenous Woman in Gold Coins of Costa Rica (1850-1864): Two Probable Origins

Sergio Aguilar — 2025-01-31

Introduction: This study provides information about an 18th century drawing and a 19th century German coin that may have served as models for the engraving of the standing indigenous woman in gold coins of Costa Rica (1850-1864). Objective: The study aims to identify the similarities between the female figures of both the drawing and the coin. In addition, it pretends to analyze the significance of the indigenous woman in the Costa Rican gold coins. Methods: For this purpose, a digital image of the drawing America by the Dutch artist Nicolaes Berchem was accessed. Besides, a Bavarian thaler silver coin from 1835 and a half-escudo gold coin of Costa Rica from 1855 were photographed. Based on the obtained images, a comparison of the female figures of the drawing and the coins was made. Conclusions: The similarities between Berchem’s drawing and the standing indigenous figure support the hypotheses that it served as a model. In addition, the thaler seems to have inspired the posture and other aspects found on its details. The symbolism of the indigenous woman evolved from representing a savage continent, rich in natural resources and open to colonization, to represent the liberty and the new government of Costa Rica.

Origin and Ancestry of the Bombo Legüero in Argentina Folklore: A Decolonial Approach

Mauro Alberto Franzen — 2025-01-31

Introduction: The bombo legüero is a traditional percussion instrument, in Argentinian folklore, that plays an essential role in various musical expressions in this South American country. Objective: This paper aims to examine the process of cultural whitewashing that affects the bombo legüero and other artistic manifestations in Latin American countries. Besides, it intends to emphasize the importance of the instrument in Argentina’s musical identity, by exploring its origins, rhythmic function, and connection to ancestral roots. Methods: The evolution of the bombo lengüero is examined in terms of its materials, dimensions, and relationships with other traditions and musical languages. Results: The analysis reveals that this instrument integrates diverse cultural influences, notably its affinity with African instruments and its central role in Argentina’s popular music. These characteristics challenge and expand the traditional Eurocentric narrative of this instrument. Conclusions: By reconfiguring the discourses surrounding the bombo legüero, the aim of this research was not to dismiss European cultural influences, but to value other traditions that have undoubtedly influenced the music of Nuestramérica. This recognition contributes to a richer and more diverse understanding of our musical identities.

Dance, Biopsychosocial, Educational, and Artistic Experiences: Contributions to the Integral Health of University Students

Carmen Elisa Flores Mejía — 2025-01-31

Introduction: This research validates the contributions of dancing in the development of university students. Objective: The purpose is to analyze the contributions of dancing in the biopsychosocial, educational, and artistic development of university students, as well as its benefits on their integral health. Methods: This case study, conducted from 2019 through the first academic term of 2023, presents the perspectives of university students on the teaching methodologies used in dance courses. The analysis was done by triangulating artistic research, systematization of experiences, and performative research, while also analyzing the enrollment percentages of students across various programs and faculties. Results: The periodization covers a time before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. It establishes and compares different learning and teaching methodologies of dance techniques, which helps defining the benefits of dancing in the lives of students. Conclusions: It was proven that dancing allows the development of skills and abilities necessary for social interaction. Besides, it contributes to the integral learning and health of students.

Approach to the Dramaturgy of Scenic Dance

Iker Gómez de la Hoz — 2025-01-31

Introduction: This paper examines dramaturgy in stage dance, a term whose meaning is often diluted between choreographic composition and stage direction. Objective: Specifically, it aims to contextualize the terminology of choreographic dramaturgy in stage dance for the precision of its function. Methods: The research is based on a critical analysis through a bibliographical review of dramaturgy, contrasted with the observation of works from different dance territories. Results: Choreographic dramaturgy is presented as a functional entity that articulates meanings in choreographic writing, facilitates artistic intention, and considers the spectator’s engagement. Two approaches to its study are supported: the postulates of the science of complexity and the proposal of complementary bases to existing methods of choreographic analysis. Conclusions: The results of this work allow an approach to the interactions between contemplation and rituality in a contemporary artistic practice, presenting both as a way of knowledge capable of transforming the spectator.

Intermedial Figures between Theater and Cinema. The Transposition to the Screen of Abelardo Estorino’s La casa vieja

Aluned Moreno del Cristo — 2025-01-31

Introduction: Film adaptations created from plays have become a favorable area to examine the intermedial and transdisciplinary relationships between both artistic practices. Objective: This paper aims to analyze the intermedial relationships that can be found between La casa vieja, a play by Cuban Abelardo Estorino, and Casa vieja, its film version, by the Cuban Lester Hamlet, in order to investigate the productivity of the dialogue that occurs between theater and cinema. Methods: We have developed a comparative analysis among some relevant elements of both works, which allow us to establish connections and find differences between the two examined artistic mediums. Results: In a general sense, it is possible to establish that, in the film, a transposition of the play is carried out, through which Estorino’s piece is rewritten, giving it new meanings. Conclusions: In Casa vieja, it is possible to find the presence of different procedures and intermedial figures, which allow us to appreciate the film’s reevaluation of the play, as well as the productivity of updating and transposing it to a new context and different medium. The marks of theatricality within the movie also make it possible to reflect on the conflicts and social problems raised through its plot.

Wheatfield with She-crows

Sandra Argüello Borbón — 2025-01-31

Wheatfield with She-crows is a fictional story that revolves around the life of Elías, a common office worker who escapes from his reality of life when he meets a prostitute. Elías lives with his elderly mother, from whom he has not been able to detach himself. In the brothel room, a painting by van Gogh begins to alter his routine.

Sororal

Allure Spinoza — 2025-01-31

Sororal explores the relationship of three sisters marked by secrets and rivalries. In a context where reproductive rights are sought to be subjected to the views of men, Marla, Nina and Mirta confront their life choices, their bodies and motherhood. The dynamics between the sisters reveal deep emotional fractures and a constant struggle to claim their own paths, in an environment that seeks to limit their choices.

‘X A L P É N’. Selk’nam Modular Performative Theater

Claudia Cattaneo Clemente — 2025-01-31

In a distant time, when the selk'nam people inhabited the land, the great ceremony of the Hain took place. At the very moment when Xalpén was about to murder the klóketen children to be resurrected by Olum, the invaders arrive and interrupt the ceremony, usurp the land, murder the selk'nam people, hide the bodies of the children and imprison the goddess Xalpén in a small hut, to prevent her from protecting her children with her fearsome power. After many years, the great hut of the Hain is abandoned and visited only by tourists and devotees who want to ask favors to the 'animita', without knowing that the goddess is actually trapped and imprisoned inside. The few selk'nam who have survived, Don Fidelio, Don Balde and El Ciego, remain hidden, wandering indefinitely between the underworld and the abandoned hut, remembering the legends and myths of their people, in order to bring out the truth and find the bodies of the klóketen children that the invaders have hidden.

Contemplative Theatricality and Initiatory Rite: a Reflection on the Scenic Practice of Vacuum map

Antonio Sánchez Román — 2025-01-31

Introduction: One of the fundamental aspects in late modern societies is the loss of the contemplative attitude, as well as the disappearance of rituals. In this text, we reflect on this issue based on the scenic practice of Vacuum map, using the concepts of contemplative theatricality and initiatory rite. Development: It follows an itinerary of understanding that can be synthesized as follows: firstly, an approach to the context is made, adjusting the key concepts; secondly, a detailed description of the play Vacuum map is given; and finally, it concludes with an autoethnographic reflection that integrates the two previous sections. Conclusion: The results obtained allow an approach to the interactions between contemplation and rituality in a contemporary artistic practice, presenting both as a way of knowledge capable of transforming the spectator.

To End With the Judgement of the Canon

Miroslava Salcido — 2025-01-31

Introduction: From the character of the manifesto and in dialogue with other writings, the following text postulates the relationship between women’s thinking, writing, philosophy and art as axes of what the author calls ‘life as literary achievement’. Development: This relationship is understood as a position taken with respect to the theological norm of the canon as a discursive strategy, proposing for the Academy another type of writing in favor of the knowledge of the body and otherness versus the enemy otherness. The latter is part of a patriarchal and colonialist discourse that has denied women their place, not only in art, but also in discourse and history. Conclusion: The text advocates overcoming the judgment imposed by the canon on women’s writing and highlights the importance of a feminist intellect within academia.