Berkley Center

Throughout this semester, I took a ballet course at Argentina’s Instituto Universitario Nacional del Arte or IUNA (National University of the Arts). IUNA, a university completely free for Argentines, consists of three main sectors: audio, visual arts, and movement, each of which has its own location in the city. At IUNA Movimiento, students study not just different dance genres but also folklore, dance theater, and expression. I have danced since I was young, but my ballet class at IUNA was unlike any other dance class I have taken in that it was clearly an academic class. I completed written assignments describing ballet exercises, attended shows and wrote reviews about them to hand in, and followed a required book detailing the specific technique for the course. It was refreshing to take a ballet class along with my other four classes—which focused on literature and linguistics—but at the same time, what I found most exciting about the class was how academic it was. The arts in Argentina are not simply a pastime.

This intensity is clear in other aspects of life in Buenos Aires, not just at the art school. The city government organizes a cultural agenda which includes a noche de los museos (night of the museums), a night where all museums are open for free and there are events and concerts. This year, over a million people attended. Though the city museums are often small and easy to go through in an hour or so, they have museums for a wide range of interests, from Evita to fine arts to the history of the press in Argentina. Similarly, there is a noche de los libros (night of the books) during which the dozens of bookstores in Buenos Aires have expositions and activities for all ages. Buenos Aires was named the World Book Capital City in 2011 by UNESCO and is known as a paradise for readers and writers because of the independent bookstores around every corner.

One famous bookstore, El Ateneo, is an old theater converted into a bookstore, and combines the Argentines’ love of reading with their passion for theater. The Teatro Colon (Columbus Theater), the oldest most prestigious theater in the capital, offers free tickets to their Sunday morning shows to anyone who waits in line on Friday morning. I went with three friends to see a world-renowned charango (an Argentine instrument) player who was accompanied by traditional dancers from the northern region of the country. It was an incredible performance to a full house. Just last weekend, I was walking with friends, and we ran into five blocks of a main avenue closed off for a tango band to play. There was a stage where anyone could get up and dance, and hundreds were tangoing in the street.

Another characteristic of Buenos Aires is its abundant cultural centers, which, unlike green spaces, can be found in nearly every neighborhood. I live a thirty-minute commute from the nearest park but two blocks away from a cultural center; there are at least four in a five or six-block radius. Cultural centers vary, but most offer courses in language, dance, music, art, and theater, as well as hold seminars and shows for the community.

Furthermore, artwork overflows in the streets. There are artisan markets throughout the city every Saturday and Sunday and no matter what the neighborhood, there is always graffiti. This graffiti goes beyond illegally spray-painting words or designs on a wall, though. Many people elect to commission their homes for murals by local artists. In the northern part of the city, colorful graffiti covers vast walls and is known for being tied to a movement of artists who endeavor to paint purely artistic graffiti. In the city center and the south, graffiti is more often used artfully to make political or social statements. Even at most public universities, the walls are covered.

In my experience before coming to Buenos Aires, the arts had always been somewhat of a separate genre, a side endeavor, which, while worthy, did not always fit into the main event. There was always talk of supporting the arts or paying more attention to the arts as if the arts were something important, yet happening on the side. But one of my favorite things about Buenos Aires is that here, the arts are not a thing so to speak; they just are. Art is not something only artists pursue or work at; it is integrated into daily life as a part of the entire city and is accessible, regardless of who or where you are.