Following the signing of the MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING between THE MINISTRY OF CULTURES, ARTS, AND TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGES OF COLOMBIA & BERLIN ART INSTITUTE to join efforts to develop cultural and artistic cooperation ties and to promote intercultural dialogue, artist Valeria Alfonso Caraballo was selected for the residency in Block 01: 01/05 – 01/30/2026 & Block 02: 02/02 – 02/27/2026 of the BAI Studio Program.
After the Open Call Colombia en el Mundo: Portafolio Cultural Internacional, THE MINISTRY OF CULTURES provided a shortlist of finalists from which Valeria was selected after a review and interview process.
“The residencies at the Berlin Art Institute were an extraordinary experience for the talented Colombian artists who took part and a powerful example of what international cultural cooperation can achieve. Through the partnership between the Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Traditional Knowledge and the Berlin Art Institute, the artists were able to develop their work within one of Europe’s most dynamic contemporary art ecosystems, strengthening intercultural dialogue and opening new pathways for Colombian art to connect with international artistic networks.” (Carolina Ethel Martínez, Head of Cooperation and International Affairs, Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Traditional Knowledge of Colombia)
More information on THE MINISTRY OF CULTURES, ARTS, AND TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGES OF COLOMBIA Website.
About the artist
Valeria Alfonso Caraballo (Bogotá, 1999) lives and works in Bogotá, Colombia.
Her background includes an MA in Visual Arts (Pontificia Universidad Javeriana de Bogotá), an academic exchange in Art History at Freie Universität Berlin (2022–2023), and earlier participation in the Berlin Art Institute Portfolio Course (2017).
Her portfolio and selected works can be found at: https://www.instagram.com/valeria.alfonso.c/
Studio Program Art Residency project focus at BAI
Project title: Between Bes
Between Bes is a painting-based research project exploring how realities, atmospheres, and spaces shift through movement, intertwining images from Bogotá with direct experience in Berlin to create a “third space” shaped by travel, visual memory, and layered geographies.
The proposal outlines a residency methodology combining direct observation, walks and dérives throughout the city, systematic photographic documentation, and drawing exercises/visual annotation, building an “intimate dialogue” between both cities through layering and accumulation in painting.
“I’m deeply grateful to the Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Traditional Knowledges of Colombia for making my residency at Berlin Art Institute possible. This residency not only gave me the space and focus to really take my art practice to next level, with continuous input from renowned international artists and experts, opening new and different fields of knowledge. It also connected me to a global art scene, learning not only about contemporary art, but how artistic work circulates internationally, and how people make living out of an artist-career. Such international collaborations are necessary for today´s arts and culture field to build a meaningful bridge, just like Colombia and Berlin in this case.’’ (Valeria Alfonso Caraballo, artist, Bogotá, Colombia)
After the residency: co-responsibility activity in Colombia
Valeria’s co-responsibility proposal focused on supporting other artists in international mobility and building networks beyond the local context. The proposed activity was a three-hour session combining presentation of her BAI experience with a participatory exercise to map desired destinations, explore opportunities, and reflect on strengthening applications and circulating local knowledge internationally.
On March 12, 2026, Valeria Alfonso Caraballo presented Entre ves at Galería Kolectiva in Cali, a recent body of work shaped by her movement between Bogotá and Berlin. The exhibition explored painting as an event formed through layered memories, sensations, and shifting geographies, creating a “third space” where multiple places and temporalities converged. Through saturated contrasts and imagined environments, the works transformed everyday references into hybrid landscapes rooted in travel, transition, and inner experience.
