Cifuentes, who developed GAM's artistic programming and audience development programs since July 2022, will arrive in the old continent to begin a new stage of the Mercat de les Flors, and work for innovation and audiences on a local and international scale.
Her extensive experience in direction, management, research, teaching and curating in the field of performing arts made her worthy of this important position. GAM greets and congratulates María José for this important appointment.
In her three years at the institution, the professional had the enormous challenge of being in charge of performing, visual and musical arts creations. In addition, the production of new works each year, international and territorial programming, activities in open spaces, audience strategies, seminars and festivals.
She took charge of the programmatic reactivation after the pandemic, giving a strong emphasis to dance, performance, contemporary languages and new work models, such as artistic residencies and situated mediations. Emblematic projects were led by her, such as Interferences (concerts in unconventional places), dance marathons, the Patti Smith exhibition, the 50 years of the Coup programming and everything related to ecosocial culture.
The Mercat de les Flors is a theater with more than 40 years of life and a key space for the creation and dissemination of dance and living arts. It is installed in the old Palace of Agriculture in Barcelona and today it is a reference for the exhibition of shows and all types of creative expression.
"This type of news honors us, not only as a cultural center, but also as a country, since a Chilean woman will assume the leadership of one of the most important dance and theater spaces in Europe. We know that the election of María José has to do with her knowledge, professionalism, thoughts and also with what she demonstrated in her work at GAM, where she managed to strengthen and give character to a programmatic grid in a challenging cultural environment. We wish her success in her new direction, we will be accompanying her from here in her next goals," said the executive director of GAM, Alejandra Martí.
Cifuentes will continue his work at GAM until July. Starting in August, the direction of Programming will be assumed on an interim basis by the current head of the area, Felipe Reyes, until the position is formalized through a competition.