arteCo 2025 takes root in Mesopotamia

In 2025, arteCo , the Corrientes art fair, turns seven. Despite the pandemic, it has established itself as a must-see event for collectors, gallery owners, and artists, even in its early years. The new edition will take place from May 22 to 25 in the restored Galería Colón building, where the Gran Cine Colón cinema used to be.

For the seventh edition, 27 galleries confirmed their participation , exhibiting 36 individual artists and 23 projects and collectives from Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay. Participation required passing a jury selection process. This time, the jury was composed of Herminda Lahitte , co-director of Gallery H; Gabriel Romero , dean of the Faculty of Arts, Design, and Cultural Sciences at the National University of the Northeast (UNNE); Eleonora Jaureguiberry , director of Malba Puertos; and collector Juan Carlos Aquino.

arteCo 2025 will be curated by collector and manager Joaquín Rodríguez . Together with his partner and associate Abel Guaglianone, they transformed their love of art into a prize: since 2022, they have been the driving force behind the In Situ Prize , which will be awarded at the fair and aims to celebrate federal art.

Unlike other fairs that are supported by foundations or private organizations, arteCO is organized and supported by the Corrientes Institute of Culture , headed by Beatriz Kunin.

In its last two editions, arteCO has innovated in terms of location . In 2023, it was held in the port of the city of Corrientes, in a space renovated for the occasion. Something similar happened in 2022, when the former Power Plant building on the banks of the Paraná River was renovated. In 2025, the former Gran Cine Colón—closed since 2007—now Galería Colón, very close to the city's civic and cultural center, was renovated.

Prior to the fair, on Wednesday, May 21, the arteCo 2025 Meeting will be held at the UNNE University Cultural Center. This will provide a space for exchange between national media leaders and students , artists, managers, and curators to professionalize the visual arts sector.

Another highlight of the weekend is the exhibitions and displays at local museums , in addition to the activities offered by independent spaces, thus forming an arteCo Circuit that can be visited in parallel with the fair. In this regard, Fundación Proa is once again focusing on the Corrientes square—it had previously hosted the exhibitions Laberintos y Diálogos (Labyrinths and Dialogues: Grete Stern / Juan Pablo Arias - Celeste Massin - Gustavo Mendoza - Belén Rohde) —and will curate and produce an exhibition at the Museo del Carnaval y Chamamé (Carnival and Chamamé Museum) - Casa Ñanderekó.

Meanwhile, artist Desirèe de Ridder will exhibit, curated by Gustavo Insaurralde , at the Museum of Traditional Crafts. Alfredo Muñoz 's work, also curated by Insaurralde, will be exhibited at the Archaeological and Anthropological Museum of the Province of Corrientes - Casa Martínez. Finally, the group exhibition Ñee Raity, curated by Agustina Soria, will be on display in the Sala del Sol at the CCU UNNE.

The Corrientes Legislature will join in with the exhibition "Homage to Lucho Olivera" in the Salón de los Pasos, along with the exhibition by Karina Amadori (Curitiba), through a cooperation agreement. This is the first formal cultural exchange action provided for in the treaty.