300 artists in Panama to celebrate South Sea discovery

By Dylis Jones
The South Biennial is underway, bringing hundreds of participating artists to Panama to mark the 500th anniversary of the discovery of the South Sea.

Organized by Panama Mayor Roxana Mendez, with the slogan "Summoning Worlds", it will provide color and entertainment in the hands of 300 artists from 65countries and highlight the commemoration of the Vth Centenary of the Discovery of the South Sea by the Vasco Núñez de Balboa (1475-1519) whose statue stand on the Cinta Costera and whose reward from the Spanish government was subsequent execution.

The event was launched Monday, April 15 at Viejo Panama under the approving gaze of the remains of the old Cathedral, and whatever Spanish ghosts may have been awakened.
There was ample traditional pomp and ceremony, attended by the movers and shakers who lined up to get their faces on the social pages of the daily papers, but its real measure will be in the reaction of the citizenry in the weeks to come.

For the mayor it is a time to be treasured and to take her mind away from some every day problems like trying to assist the faltering Metro Bus system. Her free buses were expected to hit the roads on Monday which would have been a fortuitous coincidence, but they will arrive a little late according to local custom.

Some parts of the Casco Viejo and Chorrillo, are included in the artistic extravaganza in streets and  plazas and there will be displays and performances around the city, for those not high enough up the social scale to be invited to the opening. The multiple venues will serve as a showcase for the talents of artists from Spain, England, Germany, Holland, Italy, France, Russia, Turkey, Iraq, China, Japan, India, Lithuania, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Mexico, the United States, Canada, Costa Rica and Cuba.
Parallel to the Biennial, Panama will receive the exhibition "The Way of the Cross", by the Colombian painter Fernando Botero, to be displayed in the Canal Museum, in Casco Viejo
Panamanian artists taking part are: Aristides Ureña, José Luis Rodriguez Pitti, Olga Sinclair, Rita Adames, Gabriel Batista, Brooke Alfaro, Cisco Merel, Gladys Sevillano, Alicia Viteri, Osvaldo Herrera Graham, Bernice Abadi, Bela Abbo and Canadian transplant Germaine Courchesne.