At the Instituto Buena Bista (IBB) we find ourself now, 2011, in the year of our fifth anniversary. Five years of building, cutting, pasting and adjusting. But just like with a responsible management or administration the moment has arrived to examine and evaluate. Inspect everything that has happened in the past years and decide if the course will be kept or adjusted. What were the peaks and what were the low; the successes and the failures. Thus one can, and we must, post a lot of critical questions about our policies, our projects and test our goals and results. All of these are elements that point to the needed reflection that has to bring clarity and insight into the road we have to take. Elements that have to improve the efficiency and quality of our content, without losing a lot of time. All details of the organizational structure need to be individually assessed. From admission of new students to how the IBB building is used and how we show ourself to the world.

With 16 students currently in The Netherlands and a record amount of 27 students currently attending the institute, the IBB is on its way to pave a strong foundation for the future of Curacao visual and applied arts. A foundation and platform that will have to serve and carry the needs of art on Curacao. To create room for developments, vision, direction and to reserve a place in the future for out new talents and visionaries.
Ibb didn’t only busy itself with her own students en art lovers inside the confines of it’s walls, which since last year has been situated on the Capriles Clinic grounds, but has also moved to the streets of Willemstad, the community and the schools. Places where education comes to it’s right and the added value of it is made clear. A good example of this is our pavilion on the grounds of the Capriles Clinic where IBB offers a variety of possibilities ranging from social project to the development of an exposition space and sculpture garden. In it’s five years of existence the IBB has been host to more than 30 international artists in our residence programs. All of them have taught our students, developed their own work and left works behind for our growing collection of internationally renowned modern art.

We don’t want to let five years of building pass by unnoticed. Especially because it has fed and strengthened us so much. Doors have been and will be open for us. Possibilities are created and new plans are made. Our engagement is getting bigger and multifaceted. On top of that it’s not only restricted to Curacao; the whole of the Caribbean region is involved in it. The references and horizons of our students, IBB and participants at our activities keep getting broader. The knowledge that art is like salt, stinging the wound but healing it in the process, is taken at heart at IBB and keeps showing results.

We want to share all of this with the people of Curacao. We made a program that fits perfectly with the goals, philosophy and plans for the future of IBB that is primarily aimed at art, community involvement and education. From the Museum of Modern Arts of the Dominican Republic we have Mr. Amable Lopez Melendez, head curator of the museum. Together with artists Charo Oquet (Dom. Rep. / USA) and Annalee Davis (barbados) they will give several presentations about their work, teach and work together with our IBB students an possibly with the clients of the clinic. The artwork ‘rocket launch’ that was unveiled recently during the 10-10-10 celebrations on the brionplein shall be added and unveiled, in a new version, in our sculpture garden.

The results coming forth from these workshops and creative processes shall be presented on:

31 October:

19:00 Opening by the Minister of Education, Sciences, Culture and Sport Lionel Jansen
19:30 Lecture by Amable Lopez Melendez
21:00 IBB documentary with introduction bij Tirzo Martha and David Bade
21:30 Program closure

3 November:

19:00 Presentation / lecture by the artists in residence
19:10-19:40 Charo Oquet
19:50-20:20 Annalee Davis
20:30 Official opening exhibition bij the chairperson of Foundation IBB Ir. Michael Newton

4 November

19:00 Conference by Amable Lopez Melendez entitled: Las Nuevas Practicas
Artisticas en la era del vacío