«Research Trip Fotográfica Bogotá» – Gilma Suárez

This year, Switzerland is the guest of honor at the biennial «Fotográfica Bogotá» – one of the largest international photography meetings in Latin America. In its context, COINCIDENCIA supported the research trip of the Colombian photographer, curator and director of the biennial Gilma Suárez to the European country, from 9 to 16 February 2019. The main goal of this journey was the curatorship election for the event in Bogotá.

During her stay in Switzerland, Suárez could meet different professionals. On the German speaking side, she met Peter Pfrunder (Fotostiftung Schweiz, Swiss Foundation for Photography) and Nadine Wietlisbach (Fotomuseum), directors of two independent institutions which run the Fotozentrum  (Centre for Photography), in Winterthur. On the French speaking side, she visited the Musée de l’Elysée and the Centre de la Photographie Genève.

She also dialogued with some prominent Swiss photographers, such as Luca Zanetti, David Favrod, Christian Grund, Maurice Haas, Jonathan Liechti, Dom Smaz, Nicolas Savary, Virginie Rebetez, Laurence Rasti and Catherine Gfeller.

After being part of its creation, Gilma Suárez has been directing the Fotomuseo – Colombian National Museum of Photography since 2005. Every two years, the institution organizes the «Fotográfica Bogotá». The biennial proposes exhibitions, discussions, workshops and a film festival, under their statement that «cinema cannot exist without photography». The 2019 edition happens from the 4 May to 17 June. The theme of the event is «Memoria y Resiliencia» (Memory and Resilience).