This content was published on 11 November 2021 – 18:09
San José, Nov 11 (EFE) .- “From the higuerón 500 meters to the west” is an example of the particular address system that Costa Ricans use and that is part of the soul of the city of San José, which seeks to be rescued by a audiovisual exhibition that shows iconic points, some of them no longer existing, that people use to locate themselves.
The “Soul of the City” exhibition consists of 100 square meters of led screens through which citizens take a tour of old photos of seven historical sites: the old Bellavista Barracks (now the National Museum), the old National Factory of Liquors (which today is the National Center of Culture), a remembered fig tree, the former headquarters of Radio Monumental, the TeatroVariedades, the La Bohemia bar and the old Botica Solera.
While observing the photos, a voice is in charge of guiding the public through a historical review of the places and tells some unique characteristics of each one of them.
“From the old Fanal (National Liquor Factory) 200 meters to the east” or from the “National Museum three blocks down and two to the right”, are the typical addresses that Costa Ricans prefer despite the fact that their capital city is labeled with streets and avenues, a system that very few people use in the country.
Historian Andrés Fernández told Efe that Costa Ricans preserve “deep peasant roots” that are part of the soul of the capital and that the particularities “directions to the tica” come from there.
“The city is built materially, but it is also built with memories, with memories, with stories, and in that sense the soul of the city brings to the contemporary memory of the Costa Rican, and will help a lot with the young Costa Rican, to bring some of the iconic places in the city that make a mark and have become a benchmark “, commented Fernández.
The exhibition “Alma de la Ciudad”, which will be held until next Sunday in the central Plaza de la Cultura, is part of the state Art City Tour program that begins to reactivate in the midst of the pandemic with face-to-face and free cultural events in theaters, museums and other places in San José.
“One of the pillars in the construction of the city and to make a city is its collective memory. How it is maintained, how it transcends generations and how new actors are integrated, is a very dynamic and culturally rich process. Today we celebrate a part of it, of our urban memory: directions to ethics. This is a great opportunity to review the soul that resides in our imaginary of the city “, said the director of the Art City Tour, Henry Bastos.
The exhibition has the private support of the Bavaria brand, whose brand manager, Inti Barbosa, stated that this is an example of how the private sector can support cultural activities and contribute to bringing the history of the country closer to its citizens.
“We wanted to pay tribute to these places that continue to guide us in our navigation through the city, that are no longer there but that left their mark and are part of this soul of the city so particular that San José has. We wanted to revive them and offer a different experience, technological and audiovisual “, Barbosa commented. EFE
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