Beatriz González received the Regional Grant Award in the Latin America category at the sixth International Award for Public Art 2024, presented by the International Institute of Public Art at Shanghai University.
Her installation Auras Anónimas (Anonymous Auras) was created on the columbaria of the Central Cemetery in Bogotá to pay tribute to the anonymous victims of Colombia’s armed conflict, which has spanned over 60 years. The columbaria, constructed in 1943 as part of the Central Cemetery, were initially intended to house the remains of the poorest citizens, earning them the original name “the cemetery of the poor.”
For the project, González designed eight distinct silhouettes, which were reproduced in 8,957 silk-screen prints and placed on every tombstone. The work was inspired by the visual imagery dominating the country’s news at the time—dead bodies wrapped in plastic bags. While originally conceived to honor the victims of the Bogotazo riots, the installation extended its tribute to all anonymous victims of the nation’s internal conflict, using imagery deeply tied to Colombia’s turbulent history.
© Institute for Public Art
