Patricia Elia Ariza Flórez (; born 27 January 1946) is a Colombian

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and former

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organizati ...

of the Government of Petro.

Life and career

Patricia Elia Ariza Flórez was born on 27 January 1946 in

Vélez, Santander Vélez () is a town and municipality of the Santander Department in northeastern Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Car ...

, Colombia. On the run from violence, her family arrived in the Colombian capital of

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

in 1948. During her youth she was grasped by

Nadaism Nadaism ( es, Nadaísmo, meaning "Nothing-ism" in English) was an artistic and philosophical counterculture movement in Colombia prevalent from 1958 to 1964. The movement was founded by writer Gonzalo Arango and was influenced by nihilism, existent ...

Medellín Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...

, together with, among others,

Gonzalo Arango Gonzalo Arango Arias (Andes, Antioquia, 1931 – Gachancipá, Cundinamarca, 1976) was a Colombian writer, poet, and journalist. In 1958 he led a modern literary and cultural movement known as Nadaísmo (Nothing-''ism''), inspired by surr ...

. Around the same time, at the end of the 1960s, she joined the Military

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

Youth (Juco), being influenced by her future husband Santiago García. In 1992 she left Juco, meanwhile, she had left García at this time.Rivas G., Enrique (3 January 2009
''No me van a quitar mi derecho a opinar''
In 1966, she and García founded the culture house ''Casa de la Cultura'', which was renamed ''Teatro La Candelaria'' later. This was the first alternative theater in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

. From 1967 to 1969 she studied

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the

National University of Colombia The National University of Colombia () is a national public research university in Colombia, with general campuses in Bogotá, Medellín, Manizales and Palmira, and satellite campuses in Leticia, San Andrés, Arauca, Tumaco, and La Paz, Ces ...

in Bogota.Prince Claus Fund (2007
biography
/ref>Teatro La Candelaria

Ariza distinguishes herself in the theatrical world for her special approach which focuses on promoting social interaction and reducing conflicts. For instance, she shows women who left their homes because of violence, elderly, or market salesmen, by letting them tell their life stories and giving them an active role in the development of the narrative. In her scripts, their problems play an important role. In 1991 she invited the feminist

María Evelia Marmolejo María Evelia Marmolejo (born 1958) is a Colombian radical feminist performance artist, later based in Madrid and New York City. She is credited by the Colombian scholar María Lovino with staging the first work of feminist performance art in Col ...

to reconstruct her performance ''11 de Marzo'' in commemoration of the

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...

along with the dance group Flores de Otoño, with who she later founded La Escuela de Mujeres En Escena por la Paz in 2018. The performance ended with a group of dancers covering

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...

's statue in the Plaza de Bolivar with a cloth that had traces of menstrual blood. It resulted in strong reactions from people who were walking by and yelled at her to take it down. This event was invented by dancers in present time. In 2009 the culture scene was shattered by the accusation in a secret police dossier, that claimed she had done her work only as a cover to spread mass propaganda for the communist rebel movement

FARC The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army ( es, link=no, Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de ColombiaEjército del Pueblo, FARC–EP or FARC) is a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflic ...

. In 2007 she was honored with a ''Culture and conflict''

Prince Claus Award The Prince Claus Fund was established in 1996, named in honor of Prince Claus of the Netherlands. It receives an annual subsidy from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Fund has presented the international Prince Claus Awards annually si ...

from the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

for "''her outstanding work over decades to empower the disadvantaged, enabling them to transform their lives through cultural activities, for her efforts to counteract injustice and restore social memory, and for her energetic commitment to the reduction of conflict.''" In 2014 Ariza was honored by the League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW) in New York City with the Gilder/Coigney International Theatre Award. The award was presented to Ariza in New York City in October 2014 at a ceremony at the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center, of the

Graduate Center, CUNY The Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY Graduate Center) is a public research institution and post-graduate university in New York City. Serving as the principal doctorate-granting institution of the C ...

, and was accompanied by a week of events and workshops with her or celebrating her work.

Bibliography

Ariza was the coauthor of many works. She published a number alone as well, of which the following is a selection: * 1986: ''El viento y la ceniza'' * 1981: ''La alegría de leer'' * 1984: ''Tres mujeres y prevert.'' * 1989: ''Mujeres en trance de viaje'' * 1991: ''La Kukhualina'' * 1991: ''Onic; Mi Parce'' * 1992: ''400 Assa'' * 1994: ''La calle y el parche'' * 1992-1993: ''Seran Diablos o Qué Seran'' * 1993: ''Maria Magdalena,'' * 1993: ''Luna menguante'' * 1995: ''Opera Rap'' * 1996: ''Del cielo a la tierra'' * 1996: ''Proyecto Emily'' * 1997: ''A fuego lento'' * 1998: ''Danza mayor'' * 1999: ''La madre'' * 1992: ''Medea Hungara'' * 2000-2001: ''Antégona'' * 2001: ''Los nadaístas'' * 2000: ''Mujeres desplazándos'' * 2001: ''Camilo vive'' * 2012: ''Soma Mnemosine''Teatro La Candelaria (2012)
/ref>

Filmography

The following is a selection of her roles as an actress:Colarte
personal data
*2006: ''Antígona'' *2003: ''Gran Hermano Colombia'' *''Amar y vivir'' *''Guadalupe años sin cuenta'' The following is a selection of her roles as a director: *2006: ''Antígona'' *''El viento y la ceniza''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ariza, Patricia Colombian film actresses Colombian film directors Colombian women film directors Living people 1946 births People from Santander Department National University of Colombia alumni People from Bogotá Cabinet of Gustavo Petro 20th-century Colombian actresses 21st-century Colombian actresses Colombian women poets Colombian dramatists and playwrights Colombian women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Colombian writers 20th-century Colombian women writers 21st-century Colombian women writers 21st-century Colombian writers 21st-century Colombian politicians 21st-century Colombian women politicians