The proposal revolves around the myth of "El Dorado", that mythical region that was speculated to extend from the Colombian gold-bearing rivers, passing through the Brazilian Amazon or the heights of Cusco, in Peru. Europeans in the 15th century believed that this place possessed inextinguishable riches, such as endless gold. Consequently, the search for El Dorado involved the enslavement of native people who would guide the European explorers to the city of gold. It is believed that this area was never found but we do know that the gold in the Americas was plundered and taken on ships to Europe. Silver, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, and cocoa also suffered the same fate.

Based on documentary research carried out together with the Americas Society of New York and the Amparo Museum of Puebla, Mexico, with works and cosmovisions of Latin American artists, from Victor Grippo to Mathias Goeritz, Stefan Brüggemann, and Laura Vinci, among others, representative of the "diversity of foods, materials, and riches with which America changed the world". Thus, textiles, paintings, chocolate sculptures, samples of soil from different parts of the country, and even many small silver flies still on the wall make up this exhibition.

The journey begins in the first room with the sensorial experience of the video installation "Patrón mono", by Colombian artist Carolina Caycedo, and "La balsa", by Clorindo Testa, in play with a small boat by Grippo, which disguises a golden egg. Then comes the monochromatically gilded room with Vinci's aerial installation of gilded paper, the tapestry by Brazilian Leda Catunda, and the ecclesiastical vestments with gold threads from the 18th century, among other works.

The third room introduces the story of the myth of "El Dorado" with Teran's video. Also on display are Teresa Pereda's lands as small mounds arranged on rectangular cartography, Andrés Bedoya's silver flies, Betsabeé Romero's tires intervened with gold drawings, or Santiago Montoya's chocolate sculptures, in dialogue with the silver coins found in a time capsule on the side of the Pyramid of May, and the large wings of the same precious metal.

Finally, the foreign debt that is once again being discussed in New York at the IMF headquarters with Argentine representatives returns through the exhibition of Marta Minujin's installation, who pays the debt with corn and tomatoes to Andy Warhol. The public will have the opportunity to reproduce this now iconic photo as the protagonist.

The exhibition achieves a very powerful contemporary value, since the character of "raw material" to be exported (plundered) by foreign capitalists is repeated in the north of Argentina with the lithium deposits, or in the south with the gas already handed over to multinationals.

Iván Argote

Andrés Bedoya 

Stefan Brüggemann

Fernando Bryce 

Tania Candiani 

Leda Catunda

Carolina Caycedo 

Martín Chambí

Benvenuto Chavajay Ixitetla

Olda de Amaral

Sandra Gamarra

Ximena Garrido-Lecca 

Mathias Goeritz

Victor Grippo

Leopoldo Maler   

Mazanett & Quiroga

Marta Minujín 

Santiago Montoya

Estela Pereda 

Teresa Pereda

Betsabeé Romero  

Florencia Sadir     

Evi Tártari 

Pedro Terán

Clorindo Testa

Gastón Ugalde 

Laura Vinci