fac. Fundación de Arte Contemporáneo
fac (Contemporary Art Foundation) is an independent collective of artists, managers, collectors, thinkers and stakeholders, whose objective is to produce, research and disseminate contemporary art and thought. All its activities have been self-managed and are sustained autonomously.
"La Semana de la Acción" (The Action Week) in 1999 was taken as the starting point, where Uruguayan artists participated under the slogan of action as a medium. There, Ernesto Vila, Clemente Padín, Marosa Di Giorgio, Martín Sastre, Eduardo Cardozo, among others participated.
From the beginning, the emphasis has been placed on teaching, taking as a tool for the development of artistic strategies, where ideas have a fundamental value when producing. This approach continues today with multiple activities that are carried out year after year, enriching the Uruguayan and regional cultural scene.
Over more than two decades of operation, the fac has continuously worked on the visibility platforms of contemporary art, proposing and rethinking the exhibition format and the forms of creation. It also introduces four axes of content, which are long-term projects in its field of work. These are:
Permanent education program: its main objective is the study, development of interpretation, and amplification of contemporary art and thought, with different focuses according to the proposal. Activities such as seminars, conferences, workshops and clinics are part of this point.
Film Laboratory: It takes up the old tradition of experimental cinema in the city of Montevideo and tries to expand the support in places where it considers that it will fulfill the same political ethical objective. It has three departments: still image, artisan cinema, and post-production.
FAC Residences: It is conceived as an agent of the art field for the development and process of artistic activities. It is a device that constructs critical discourses and aims to subvert the hegemonic gaze of the place.
Editafac: The project consists of an editorial dedicated exclusively to contemporary national and regional thought and artistic production (Southern Cone - Latin America), from a socio-political perspective.
More than 50 artists have been part of the collective, which has combined a dynamic body of work throughout its career, both in carrying out activities and in gallery representation at the national and international levels. Some of those who participate or have participated are Fernando López Lage, Margaret Whyte, Javier Abreu, Juan Uría, María Clara Rossi, Dani Umpi, Enrique Aguerre, Patricia Bentancur, Juan Burgos, Jacqueline Lacasa, Santiago Velazco, etc.
Artists and curators from various countries have been invited, and some of them are an active part of the process of permanent archiving, restoration, conservation, cataloging, and dissemination. Among them (chronological order): Narcisa Hirsch (Arg), Graciela Taquíni (Arg), Mariela Yeregui (Arg), Elvis Fuentes (Cuba), Marc Mercier (Fr), Veronique Sapin (Fr), Laura Baigorri (Esp), Stefano Canapa (It), Ruben Guzman (Arg), Bill Brand (USA), Juan Jose Mugni (Uru), Carlos Porro (Uru), Mark Street (USA), Lynn Sacks (USA), Barbara Hammer (USA), Katy Martin (USA), Virginia Villaplana (Esp), Teresa Trujillo (Uru), Miguel Hernández (Esp), José Luis Brea (Esp), Maxi Jacoby (Arg), Julieta Keldjian (Uru), Paula Felix Didier (Arg), Claudio Caldini (Arg).
Support has been received for specific activities from institutions such as Cultural Center of Spain of Uruguay and Brazil, National Museum of Visual Arts, Engelman Ost Collection, HUM Editorial, National Image Archive, New York University, Museo del Barrio, CENDEAC and Daros (book donation), Ministry of Education and Culture, among others.
