Verónica Posada Álvarez
Spores / Esporas
A diaspora is a spore. Geographical dispersion leads to the creation of a home from otherness – the quality of being other – a change in perspective coded in us by the journeys we take and the move from our place of origin to a host town.
Spores is a literary essay written in two voices (Audio Visual Installation). One is speaking from the poetics of being a migrant wandering in an oniric place; the other one is talking from a more academic, historical and experiential place.
A constellation of migrants created their own space in the global capital. People originating from many different latitudes identified here as Latin American and in this way, London’s first Colombian café saw its clientele grow. The British geographer Cathy McIlwaine noticed that despite Latin America representing a vast and expansive territory, those of us who come from there tend to collectively put down roots within the parameters of community … ‘common-unity’. In this essay written and read between two languages, two voices, I tell the story of young migrant woman; it’s a narrative that analyses urban trajectories of the Latin American Diaspora in London. I use illustration, photographs, and archive material that I have created alongside my PhD Research at CREAM to produce this piece linking memory, belonging, and migration. It reflects on the impact of new urban dynamics for diaspora communities and, in that sense, it is deeply related to the theme of Ecological Futurisms.
Biography
Verónica Posada Álvarez studied Graphic Design in Medellín, Colombia. In 2017 she graduated from her MA in Arts and Visual Culture at the University of Westminster in London-England. Currently, she is studying a PhD in Cultural Studies, in which she works with the Latin American diaspora in London. The research is part of CREAM (Research Centre in Education, Arts, and Media) at the University of Westminster. She worked as a Museographer and other cultural institutions. Verónica has 6 years of experience as a lecturer; she has taught courses related to Design and Sociocultural Theories. Verónica has a massive interest in contemporary artistic practices that aimed to raise political concerns to improve the life of communities at risk within cities, throughout visual culture. Additionally, Verónica believes in Collage and Photography, as a means of expression from which is possible to expose concerns as a woman within society.