Juana Berrio

Juana Berrío is an independent curator and writer based in San Francisco. She has worked at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the New Museum in New York City, and on the 2013 Venice Biennale. In 2014, Berrío co-founded and directed Kiria Koula, a gallery, bookstore, and programming space in San Francisco. She has contributed essays to Frog Magazine (France), Bielefelder Kunstverein (Germany), SFMOMA’s Open Space, San Francisco, New Museum’s Six Degrees, New York City, Kadist Foundation, Paris, Dos, New York City and Look Lateral, Italy, among others. 

“During my visit to the Cape, I worked on projects of different scales and scopes.
I was designing and conducting research for the renovation of a private multifunctional space located in the mountains of Subachoque, in the savannah of Bogotá, Colombia. 

I was also exploring ideas for a new series of functional ceramic pieces, including lamps, bowls, and vases. While I absorbed the colors and textures of the season in the diverse landscape of the Cape, I was also inspired and mesmerized by the wisdom, innovation, and simplicity of the modern houses found in this small but rich region. Having the chance to navigate these houses in person not only sparked creative ideas, it also allowed me to have an intimate experience with the ‘aura’ of the unique personal details, objects, and stories added by the various people who have given a life to these spaces over the years. What I felt and experienced seeped into most things I am thinking about and working on, as the simplicity and brilliance of the modern houses, effortlessly immersed in and in conversation with nature, can seemingly be applied to all endeavors.”