Amanda Piña Frontera / Procesión – Un Ritual de Água

[Dance]

The decolonisation of the arts and culture is the ambition of a far-reaching, pluridisciplinary project entitled Endangered Human Movements. Initiated in 2014, it has been exploring human movements since that time. Frontera/ Procesión – Un ritual del Agua constitutes the fourth instalment in this research process.

Amanda Piña’s latest piece delves deep into the roots of the conquest and colonisation of the Americas. It also looks at contemporary forms of violence and domination, for example in the north of Mexico, in Matamoros, a city on the border with the USA which is home to numerous factories relying on cheap labour, and rampant drug trafficking. At the crossroads between anthropology, history, philosophy, the visual arts and dance, she combines colonial past, indigenous practices and hip-hop culture as a means of exploring the possibilities of a choreography of frontiers. By associating her work with women who are at risk or who find themselves in distressing situations, the choreographer invents a contemporary “water ritual”, and conjures up new forms of solidarity. Together, they create a collective impulse aimed at decolonising the arts, and also the body.