Arts & Entertainment

Exhibit showcases Salvadoran communities’ response to environmental threats

San Salvador, Nov 11 (EFE).- An art exhibit at the Cultural Center of Spain in El Salvador (CCESV) is showcasing how three Salvadoran communities are responding to environmental threats and their repercussions.

Titled “Cartografias Liquidas” (Liquid Mapping), the exhibit in San Salvador is the product of a collaborative effort involving artists, activists and environmental collectives.

Emmety Pleitez, the CCESV’s cultural manager, told Efe the exhibition is the fruit of a year’s worth of work, including the results of an artistic residency project.

The six artists selected to take part in those residencies – three Salvadorans and three Europeans – learned about the environmental work being carried out by three Salvadoran communities and used it as inspiration for their creations.

“The exhibit … is the result of a lot of talks, a lot of conversations with people from communities in different areas of the country, discussing about how to cultivate (crops), how to conserve water, the value of the land,” Pleitez said.

She said that what sets this exhibit apart is that the experience was “very human, person to person, multidisciplinary.”

The work showcased in the exhibit includes photographs, audiovisual material in which environmental activists describe their struggle and resistance, illustrations, a theater production, sound art and embroidery.

“The climate crisis is gigantic and it’s imminent. It’s happening. The outlook is quite bleak, but when we learn about the experiences of these communities, how they’re finding ways to adapt and reduce the risks, we feel inspired and they give us more motivation to take action to help the environment,” Pleitez said.

Vidalina Morales, an environmental activist from the central department of Cabañas and a participant in the project, told Efe it was a “really lovely experience, wonderful in that we were able to share our experiences.”

She said the project also served to bring visibility to the contribution women make toward the collective defense of water resources – a “struggle we carry out on a daily basis that often goes unnoticed and unrecognized.”

The exhibit was inaugurated on Thursday night and will be open to the public until Dec. 14. EFE

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