Regina José Galindo on the Post-Pandemic Fate of Performance Art

Guatemalan artist Regina José Galindo (b. 1974) discusses her career and the future of performance art after the pandemic. She began by translating poetry into visual images, as in 'Dolor en un pañuelo' (1999), where words function as lines to build images that materialize only through action. Over time, her focus shifted from highlighting Guatemalan socio-political issues to engaging with diverse contexts, recognizing universal problems like greed for power and money. She still addresses her homeland's injustices. On migration, she views the migrant as a free individual exercising a fundamental right, criticizing the greed that turns the earth into a space of plunder. In works like 'La Intención' (2016) and 'Suelo Común' (2013), she catalyzes violence by inducing audience participation, aiming for active engagement rather than moral lessons. She identifies as a political individual, not a political artist, shaped by growing up amid coups and bombings in Guatemala City. Regarding the pandemic's impact on performance, she argues that the body extends beyond the physical; online events have introduced new audiences to art. She cites performative acts like balcony applause in Madrid, bed sheets in Italy protesting a femicide, burning bodies in Ecuador, and white flags of hunger in Guatemala as life itself, not art. She refrains from speculating on art's destiny, emphasizing art and culture as an oasis amid chaos.