EC: The attitude of the judges, during both events, has been to be completely open and receptive to the artistsí­ work. I believe that in both cases a position has been maintained of not authorizing unsubstantial and light imitations of what is fashionable or "politically correct", and to prioritize conditions of quality both political and sociological, anthropological and/or existential and personal, naturally incorporating the aesthetic and visual element.

The first award at the first event —"Aria", by the Panamanian Brooke Alfaro- was an indirect but very precise reflection on the relationship between "high" and "low" culture, weaving a counterpoint which involved a criticism of the situation of poor children in Panama, which can be extended here to an entire Central American and Latin American context. The second award, —"Auto opsis", by the young Costa Rican José Alberto Hernández- dealt with matters of an existential type such as death, in a voyeuristic, but also cold and distant manner. In the case of the third award— "Water, wind and stone", by the Mexican-Costa Rican Joaquí­n Rodrí­guez del Paso- referring to the use of the screen as a triptych and utilizing a poem by Octavio Paz as leitmotiv, the work incorporates a metaphoric reflection on the conflictive links between a "pure" poetical experience, and the paranoiac overflowing of our mass media saturated societies.

For the second of this yearí­s exhibitions, the jury engaged deeply and seriously in analyzing and selecting works, taking as a base to a large extent on works with very critical themes — both politically and socially. In this sense, a video such as "Documento 1/29", by the Nicaraguan-Colombian duo Ernesto Salmerón and Mauricio Prieto, intervenes and takes over a classic cinematographic genus such as the documentary, to establish a counterpoint with respect to the self-apologetic and manipulated viewpoints established under dictatorial and repressive systems — such as the regime of Somoza in Nicaragua — which in one way or another reach like political and cultural tentacles into the Nicaragua of today. A much more immediate, direct and clear vision is the work presented by "Los artistas de la calle" (street artists) from Honduras, which submitted a video — censured in their own country — combining an ironic animation and documentation of a violent public intervention amidst a terrible situation of confrontation and repression. The work forms a sarcastic commentary on political power in Honduras. In the case of another award, "Memorias del porqué" (Recollections of why), by the Costa Rican resident in Mexico, Edgar León, presents a clear and direct denouncement of the misrepresentation and hiding of facts by one of the most important news sources in Costa Rica — the newspaper La Nación- which manipulated information on a serious problem in an abandoned and conflictive area of the country. Costa Rican Lucí­a Madriz examined a more private space — but one with very open public and social connotations — within the video "Dolor de cabeza" (Headache). This work engages in a subtle yet ironic recreation of the invisible though very present domestic violence crisis taking place each day (and increasingly frequently) in our ‘machistaí­ Latin American world.

With these two Central American video art presentations and with the international cinema and video showcases "Espacios a la Experimentación" held in 2002-2003, we have attempted to show the most recent, restless production emanating from the Central American region, confront the international arena and converge very different visual ideas and proposals, aesthetic and theoretic perspectives, the result of which will be a search for permanent experimentation and the elimination of rules and standards of all kinds.

Ernesto Calvo Alvarez is the coordinator of the Central American video art presentations "Inquieta Imagen" (Restless Image) and the international cinema and video showcases "Espacios a la Experimentación" (Spaces for Experimentation).

For more information about the MADC please visit: www.madc.ac.cr