Somerville Museum: Bittersweet Exhibition

Created by two of Latin America’s leading artists – José Falconi from Peru and Santiago Montoya from Colombia – Bittersweet expands upon their original collaboration in Colombia, titled, “El Dorado Chocolaterie.” This reference to the foundational myth of “El Dorado,” that elusive city where everything was covered in gold, derives from the earliest days of colonization in the 16th century when countless explorers mounted expeditions in search of it. Over the years, the myth has served as an allegory for the ongoing search and exploitation of Colombia’s immense natural wealth and as a symbol for get-rich-quick schemers who traffic in its resources from gold to quinoa, or from emeralds to cocaine. Sure to attract the attention of critics and art-lovers from Somerville and beyond, Bittersweet reimagines the elusive paradise of gilded beings long sought by South American explorers. Instead of gold, however, these explorers will enter into the subconscious world of sweets, turning the Museum into an enormous chocolate factory where with the exchange for a hot cup of cocoa will be the visitor’s time.

The Tally Sticks used to display the chocolate sculptures in Bittersweet were sourced and masterfully carpentered in the Cerro de Armas, Santander region of the Colombian rainforest using only naturally uprooted or already decaying trees. The project represents a culmination of Santiago’s views on the sustainability of society and the fragility of our financial and socio-political infrastructure.

General Admission: $5 (includes hot chocolate for an exchange of 30 minutes of the visitors time and a promise of a good deed); Museum members free.

Complete Experience Admission: $15 (includes admission and hand-made ceramic cup* for hot chocolate); Museum members price = $10.

*Ceramic cups are hand-made by Mudflat artists and a portion of the proceeds benefit Mudflat Studio.

For the Museum’s open hours and events check out our event schedule: https://www.somervillemuseum.org/events

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