Bittersweet
January 27, 2022 – March 26, 2022 | Curated by José Falconi and Santiago Montoya (Community Curators)
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.
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El Dorado Chocolaterie
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The Tally Sticks
Programming
Kalliope Reed Quintet Community Concert: Friday, March 25th, 6pm | Join us for an evening of music and chocolate. A perfect complement to the Bittersweet exhibition. Through music, this program tours South America south to north starting in Argentina with Astor Piazzolla’s Tango Suite, Transoceanica by Miguel del Aguila (Uruguay) - musically depicting a bus adventure from Rio Brazil to Lima Peru. After arriving in Peru we will perform two works we commissioned by Pervian composer Daniel Cueto: Momentos Peruanos and Amaru, and complete the program with some new arrangements from Colombia. Admission is $10/person; Museum members free. Space is limited, - purchase your tickets today!
Closing Reception: Saturday, March 26th | 2-5pm | Admission is $5/person; members free.
Past Programming
Opening Reception: due to COVID restrictions this event will be private
BITTERSWEET @ Bow Market: Friday, February 11th, 5-7pm | Part of the Chocolate Stories Salon series. Join us for an evening of chocolate, rum, history, and discussion. Admission: $15/person; Museum members: $10. Admission includes hot cocoa and rum. Space is limited - purchase your tickets today!
Curator Tour: Saturday, February 12th, 11am | Join us for an in-depth look at our current exhibition, Bittersweet, curated by two of Latin America’s leading artists – José Falconi from Peru and Santiago Montoya from Colombia. Admission: $10/person; Museum members free. Space is limited - purchase your tickets today!
Bittersweet Valentine’s Day @ the Somerville Museum: Monday, February 14th, 4–7pm | Looking for an impromptu Valentine's/Galentine's Day date night option? Need a last minute chocolate gift for your sweetheart? We're opening the Museum to the public on Monday, February 14th for a few hours in honor of this sweet holiday and our Bittersweet exhibition. We also have lots of merchandise items that will make great gifts. Admission can be purchased at the door.
Sweet City: A History of Candy Manufacturing in Somerville, Cambridge, and Boston: Thursday, February 17th, 6pm | Join us for a virtual evening about the history of sweets by beloved confectioner Jeremy Spindler of Spindler Confections. This event is part of our Bittersweet exhibition's Chocolate Stories Salon series and is co-sponsored by our friends and partners at Historic Somerville. Admission is free but donations are welcome. This event was recorded and can be viewed here.
Virtual Taza Chocolate Tour: Thursday, March 3rd, 6pm | Join us for a virtual tour of Taza Chocolate hosted by Taza Chocolate, the Somerville Museum and Bittersweet exhibition curators, José Falconi and Santiago Montoya. This event is part of our Bittersweet exhibition's Chocolate Stories Salon series. This event is free, but donations are welcome.
Meet Your Local Chocolatiers: Friday, March 11th, 5–6:30pm | Join the Somerville Museum’s Community Curators, José Falconi and Santiago Montoya, for a night of chocolate and conversation. Joined by local chocolatiers, Mateo from Prophecy Chocolate and Eric from Somerville Chocolate, this event is part of the Bittersweet exhibition's “Chocolate Stories Salon” series. Admission is free to all with a suggested donation of $10/person.
Curator Tour (in Spanish): Saturday, March 12th, 11am | Join us for an in-depth look at our current exhibition, Bittersweet, curated by two of Latin America’s leading artists – José Falconi from Peru and Santiago Montoya from Colombia. Admission: $10/person; Museum members free. Space is limited.
Community Partners
The Somerville Museum along with Community Curators, José Falconi and Santiago Montoya, are pleased to be working with organizations and members of the community. While the list continues to grow we’d like to acknowledge these relationships:
Read about Bittersweet in the news!
About Community Curators
Colombian artist, Santiago Montoya, poses with artist and curator José Falconi in front of Montoya’s wall art.
Santiago Montoya
Born in 1974 in Bogotá, Colombia, Santiago Montoya now lives and works in Miami. Montoya’s practice has been dedicated to the exploration of notions of value, nationalism, commodities and the universal consequences and nuances of the production and distribution of wealth. Initially a painter, an inspired progression was to incorporate the actual raw materials in his work – global currencies, gold, silver, copper and other precious materials – exposing the disconnect between official state ideologies and reality itself. Montoya captures the collective consciousness, questioning the systems of power and shining a light on the disparities, injustices, and the absurd. Montoya’s works combine a wry humour and acute insight on a global subject that affects us all, and the inherent systems and structures that we live by.
Recent exhibitions include a solo presentation with Offshoot Arts at Context Art Miami; ‘Elsewhere(s)’ at Untitled Art Fair, curated by José Luis Falconi and Estrellita Brodsky, Miami; ‘Seeds of Resistance’ at the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum in Michigan, and Art Museum of the Americas, Washington D.C. Along with this exhibition Montoya has an upcoming solo exhibitions DRCLAS at Harvard University. Montoya’s work is highly collected in both public and private collections, including MFA Boston, AMA Washington D.C, Jill & Peter Kraus, and Estrellita & Daniel Brodsky, amongst others.
Learn more about Santiago’s works.
This exhibition is part of our Community Curator program. Learn more here.
A special thanks to Taza Chocolate for their very generous in-kind chocolate donation. This exhibition wouldn’t be possible without their support.
This program is made possible by a grant from Mass Humanities, which provided funding through the National Endowment for the Humanities via the American Rescue Plan.
This program is supported in part by a grant from the Somerville Arts Council, a local agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.