Gurudev 1
Siri Gurdev (UT EID: dch2583) Professor Dr. Megan Alrutz Research Methods Performance art in Bogotá: ten postcards Introduction I.
WAJA: a Powerful Organization
Since 2003, unexpected and intriguing events have happened around the central city in Bogotá, Colombia. The ones who facilitate the appearance of this events, the directors of WAJA Foundation, called them “performances.” These performances are politically driven: they address armed conflict in Colombia, forced displacement, gender identities and inequity, re-connection with nature, healing practices, among others. Although not many researchers (besides the directors of WAJA themselves Paola Correa and Gustavo Gutiérrez), have reflected upon the creative process behind this performances, or the meaning and effects in the city and the people involved, they are part of a broader context of performance art in Colombia and Latin-America that is happening since the late 80's. What is unique about WAJA is the fact that Paola and Gustavo are not just interdisciplinary makers, as the well-known contemporary performers in the circuit of art and research such as Tzitzi Barrantes or La Fulminante. WAJA is one of the only alternative spaces that leads creative processes to produce performance pieces in the city. Even though WAJA isn't described as an educational institution, Paola and Gustavo have fostered the reflection and production of performance art through pedagogical processes framed as one or two-month-long workshops. In fact, they have been doing this even before the creation of the Master in Theatre and Live Arts in The National University of Colombia, which is the first program of its kind in Latin-America and