- The initiative began in February 2020 and held more than 120 activities in four programs.
- More than 29 projects commissioned across five venues in Morelia and Patzcuaro.
- More than 200 works where exhibited.
Mexico City, Mexico. June 30, 2021. – The 14th FEMSA Biennial, under the title of Inestimable Azar (Inestimable Chance), was held in Morelia and Patzcuaro, Michoacán. Thanks to this initiative, more than 60,000 people and 200 cultural agents were reached through approximately 120 in-person and online activities that started from four closely related programs: the Public Program, the Pedagogical Program, the Curatorship Program, and the Editorial Program.
Under Daniel Garza Usabiaga’s artistic direction and Livier Jara’s executive direction, this edition referred to the circumstances and random contexts that converge both in artistic creation and in the encounters and dialogues that are generated in the community. Twenty-four commissions by national and international artists and five commissions by local curators were presented, exhibiting more than 200 works.
“We deeply appreciate the collaboration and participation of all those who made possible the holding of this 14th edition of the FEMSA Biennial in the state of Michoacán, which, despite the unprecedented challenges posed by the pandemic, went ahead. Through the FEMSA Biennial, we insist on our purpose of recognizing, strengthening, stimulating, and promoting artistic creation in Mexico, as well as continuing to contribute to the generation and promotion of spaces for bonding, dialogue, and collaboration, which positively affect the communities where the Biennial has presence,” said Luis Quirós, Cultural Program Manager at FEMSA Foundation.
The activities of the 14th FEMSA Biennial were conducted in 5 venues: the Clavijero Cultural Center, the Michoacán State Museum, the Alfredo Zalce Contemporary Art Museum, and Casa Taller Alfredo Zalce in Morelia, and the Old Jesuit College Cultural Center, in Patzcuaro.
The Public Program was conducted from February to December 2020. Conferences and talks were offered with recognized national and international specialists. The Pedagogical Program was taught from February to November 2020 through activities such as conferences, talks, and workshops with renowned national and international specialists, offering tools for the development of people in the arts, curatorship, criticism, and cultural management.
The Curatorship Program began in October 2020 with exhibitions in various cultural spaces in Morelia and Patzcuaro, where 29 commissioned projects were presented. It remained on display until April 2021. Finally, as part of the Editorial Program, several digital publications gathering the events of this edition are forthcoming.
Since February 2020, the 14th FEMSA Biennale has served specific local needs from cultural and environmental sectors. Learning and knowledge were shared, promoting exchange and dialogue, and projects were co-created to spread culture and promote reflection and learning.
The FEMSA Biennale was instituted in 1992 to recognize, strengthen, stimulate, and disseminate artistic creation in Mexico. Through the years, it has positioned itself as an essential promoter of art in our country and has acquired more and more recognition at the national and international levels. This initiative is carried out in a different state in each edition to disseminate the artistic wealth of various regions in Mexico, as well as its cultural heritage, building artistic collaboration networks within their communities, and the commitment to generate connection and visibility to its members globally.
Participating Commissioned Artists
Carlos Amorales y Guillermo Galindo (Mexico), Patricia Belli (Nicaragua), Roxana Cervantes (Mexico), Livia Corona Benjamín (Mexico), Olmo Cuña (Spain), Débora Delmar (Mexico), Rodolfo Díaz Cervantes (Mexico), Carlos Fernández (Costa Rica), Adela Goldbard (Mexico), Sergio Gutiérrez (Mexico), Circe Irasema (Mexico), Madeline Jiménez Santil (Dominican Republic), Nadia Lartigue and Juan Francisco Maldonado (Mexico), Israel Martínez (Mexico), Leo Marz (Mexico), Nuria Montiel (Mexico), Fernando Palma (Mexico), Ana Pellicer (Mexico), Gabriel Rico (Mexico), Artemio Rodríguez (Mexico), Marco Rountree (Mexico), Adán Vallecillo Danlí Honduras), Inés Verdugo (Guatemala), Dick Verdult (Holland).
Participating Commissioned Curators
Erandi Ávalos, Jesús Jiménez, Diego Rodríguez, Ángel Pahuamba, Francisco Huaroco.
XIV FEMSA Biennial Team
Daniel Garza Usabiaga, Livier Jara, Víctor Palacios, Esteban King, Juan Carlos Jiménez, Jaime Ortiz Lozano, Carlos Sandoval, Alejandro Gómez, Catalina Bojacá, Carmen Cabrera, Ivone Papaqui, José Luis Arroyo Robles, Marco López Valenzuela, Yaneli Luna, Andrea Cuevas , Robin Myers, Jaume Ferrete.
About FEMSA
FEMSA is a company that generates economic and social value through companies and institutions and seeks to be the best employer and neighbor of the communities where it is present. It participates in retail trade through FEMSA Comercio, which comprises the Proximity Division and of which OXXO, a small-format store chain, is part; a Health Division that includes pharmacies and related activities; and a Fuels Division that operates the OXXO Gas service station chain. Coca-Cola FEMSA participates in the beverage industry, the world’s largest bottler of Coca-Cola products by sales volume; and in the beer sector, as the second largest shareholder in HEINEKEN, one of the world’s leading beer companies with a presence in more than 70 countries. FEMSA also participates in the logistics and distribution industry through FEMSA Strategic Businesses, which additionally provides refrigeration solutions at point-of-sale and plastic solutions to its companies and external clients. Through its Business Units it employs more than 320,000 collaborators in 13 countries. FEMSA is a member of the MILA Pacific Alliance Sustainability Index of the Dow Jones, of the FTSE4Good Emerging Index and of the Sustainable IPC of the Mexican Stock Exchange, among other indices that evaluate its sustainability performance.
About FEMSA Foundation
At FEMSA Foundation, our mission is to positively impact people and communities through social investment for sustainability. We make a better future for everyone by working in three strategic areas: we promote efficient resource management for sustainable development, we promote the integral development of early childhood, and we promote Latin American art and culture. For more information, visit us at www.fundacionfemsa.org or follow us on Facebook (/ FundacionFEMSA) and Twitter (@FundacionFEMSA).
About FEMSA Collection
For more than 40 years, the FEMSA Collection has sought to preserve, document, consolidate, promote, and disseminate modern and contemporary Latin American art. Established in 1977 as part of the company’s commitment to the integral development of its workers, families, and the communities where they develop, it is currently recognized as one of the most important corporate collections internationally. Its Collection, consisting of more than 1,200 works, offers a journey that illustrates the evolution, plurality, and richness of artistic production in Latin America during the 20th and 21st centuries. Through an active program of exhibitions, individual loans of works, publications, and various academic and educational activities, FEMSA shares its Collection with the most diverse communities in Mexico and abroad, fulfilling its objective of promoting the dissemination of culture and the promotion of artistic appreciation. The FEMSA Collection is part of the FEMSA Foundation, which positively impacts people and communities through social investment projects for sustainability.
About FEMSA Biennial
The FEMSA Biennial is an art platform that changes cities with each edition. Founded in 1992, it seeks to recognize, strengthen, encourage, and disseminate artistic creation in Mexico. Its consolidation over the years has given it recognition as an essential promoter of art and culture in the country, and it has acquired more and more international prestige. The FEMSA Biennial is part of the FEMSA Foundation, which positively impacts people and communities through social investment projects for sustainability.