The Architectural Association School of Architecture (AA) has announced its first 'Visiting School' program in Bolivia, taking place in El Alto, on the Altiplano surrounding the city of La Paz. Directed by alumni Sabrina Morreale and Lorenzo Perri, this exciting three weeks workshop is entitled "Cultural Assembling". It will question the idea of identity, folklore and rituals translated into architectural artefacts - that becomes thus a collision among a multitude of symbolic fragments.

Freddy Mamani Silvestre, the main representative of contemporary Andean Architecture, will teach in the course, explaining the cultural and construction process behind his colorful and extravagant cholets in El Alto.

AA Visiting School El Alto will start with the investigation of traditional masks and the collection of as many ready-made fragments as possible in the Alasitas - a religious festival where objects of common use are transformed and sold as holy miniatures. Then, following a constructed narrative, these pieces will be dissected in terms of meaning, proportions and materiality and re-combined into radically new assemblages.

Participants will work both individually and in groups, collaborating closely with a teaching team composed of Bolivian historians, architects and artists. The students will have the opportunity to work in the studio of the painter Graciela Rodo Boulanger and the ceramist Mario Sarabia, based in the mountains of the Moon Valley. In the third week, the workshop will take place throughout the five floors of the Teatro Trono in El Alto.

The programme will end with the Carnaval of Oruro, where students will combine their individual pieces, spatially assembled and choreographed as if they were parts of an architectural folkloric dance.

What

AA Visiting Schools are intense, short courses held across a variety of locations worldwide, that allow students to explore a range of topics relevant to architecture alongside developing new technical skills.

Who

The workshop is open to current and prospective students, as well as young professionals, recent graduates in architecture, design, photography, art, craft and other related fields.

When

22nd of January - 11th of February. Registration is now open. The deadline for application is 31st of December.

Where: La Paz, Bolivia, El Alto, Bolivia and Oruro, Bolivia

Features

3D Digital Model Making

Fabrication and hand modelling Skills

Sketching, hand-drawing and painting

Casting and ceramic molding

Photography Skills

Group work environment

Presentation and Argumentation Skills

Price

The AA Visiting School requires a fee of £860 per participant, which includes a £60 Visiting membership fee. Fees include tuition and private transportation around the city and to El alto. All museums entrances, workshop setup, materials and tools are provided. Flights to La Paz, accomodation and meals are not included.

Please visit the website to learn detailed info about the program. If you have any questions about registrations, send your questions to [email protected]. Online applications are accepted via online registration from. 

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