Cultural Leadership on Marcela Villanueva

Bardo 2026 — Artistic Direction & Programme Development

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Artistic direction of Bardo Projektraum’s 2026 programme, developed within the space’s two-year Basisförderung 2026–2027 from the Berlin Senate. Marcela Villanueva shaped the overall programme, selected and accompanied curatorial proposals, coordinated artistic and institutional partnerships, and ensured coherence across exhibitions, residencies and public programmes developed by invited curators and artists. The year brought together projects including Dreams That Wake, Topographies of Memory, PINOCENO, Archivum Naturae, But Call Me Lolita, Unhousing: An Enclave for Queer Utopia, LAR, Miradas a Chile and Making Places Inbetween, addressing migration, memory, ecology, queer futures, belonging, displacement and diasporic experience. The programme positioned Bardo as a platform for migrant, feminist, queer and Global South artistic practices in Berlin.

The Pocket Gallery

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A one-square-metre micro-gallery in central Berlin conceived by Marcela Villanueva through Karne Kunst as an experiment in accessible, low-footprint exhibition infrastructure. Open 24/7 and free to the public, the space was created in response to shrinking independent cultural infrastructure, rising costs and limited access to exhibition opportunities in Berlin. Each project is developed specifically for the constraints and possibilities of the site, turning scale into a curatorial device rather than a limitation. Hosted by Gat Point Charlie Hotel, the programme supports emerging and underrepresented artists through site-specific exhibitions, installations and experimental formats, including projects by Alejandro Montero Bravo, Mamita Chicha and Alice Brunello Luise.

ABC Kultur → ABC Incuba

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A long-term professional development and cultural incubation programme created and directed by Marcela Villanueva through Sorora e.V. to support transnational FLINTA artists and cultural workers in Berlin. Initially developed as ABC Kultur, the programme provided practical orientation on cultural management, funding, self-employment, language and professional networks. It later evolved into ABC Incuba, a six-month incubation model that combines direct project funding, weekly mentoring, specialised workshops, peer exchange and public presentations, supporting participants from early concept development through production and implementation. Each selected project receives €2,000 and ongoing accompaniment, while many workshops remain open to the wider community. ABC has become a sustained access structure for migrant cultural practitioners navigating Berlin’s cultural ecosystem, helping them build projects, networks and greater professional autonomy.

Bardo Projektraum

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

An independent contemporary art space and cultural hub in Berlin-Friedrichshain, founded and artistically directed by Marcela Villanueva as the central physical platform of Karne Kunst’s curatorial ecosystem. Bardo supports Latin American, Caribbean and diasporic artistic practices in Berlin while creating sustained space for migrant, feminist, queer and historically underrepresented positions. Its programme combines exhibitions, curatorial residencies, artistic research, performances, screenings, workshops, talks, publications and public programmes, bringing artists, curators, researchers and local communities into close exchange. Beyond presenting finished work, Bardo functions as a site for experimentation, professional development and long-term project development, supporting both Marcela’s own curatorial practice and projects led by invited curators. Since 2026, the space has been supported through Berlin’s two-year Basisförderung für Präsentationsorte, consolidating its role within the city’s independent art ecosystem.

NEST — Maternar en Residencia / Resistencia

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A long-term residency and artistic development programme created by Marcela Villanueva to rethink the conditions of cultural production for artists who mother. Since 2022, NEST has developed residential, exhibition and research formats in Coswig, Berlin and Colombia, integrating children, care, collective living and artistic practice rather than treating caregiving as an obstacle to professional development. Across its editions, the programme has brought together more than thirty artists and cultural practitioners and generated exhibitions including Parallel Maternal and Care and Revelations, as well as longer-term projects such as Gabriela Rivera Lucero’s Maternajes Transfronterizos. Developed through Karne Kunst with Sorora e.V. and a growing network of artists, curators and cultural partners, NEST positions care as both cultural infrastructure and a field of artistic research

Nosotras Luchamos / Wir kämpfen

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A transnational feminist artivism platform initiated in Berlin in 2018 by Karne Kunst and Xochicuicatl. Bringing together material from around fifty Latin American feminist collectives, the project connected photography, video, graphic work, zines, textiles and documentation of public actions addressing feminicide, gender violence, inequality, bodily autonomy and collective resistance. Developed through exhibitions, workshops, public encounters and institutional collaborations, the project was repeatedly reactivated across community, cultural and academic contexts. In 2022, 105 photographs and related materials were recontextualised at Universität Heidelberg as Reclaiming the Body: Feminism, Community, and Territory, contributing to the research and discussions that later developed into the academic journal issue MIRADAS 08 (2025) on feminist artivism and decolonial feminism in Latin America.

Karne Kunst

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Karne Kunst is a Berlin-based cultural platform founded in 2017, working across curatorial practice, programme development and cultural infrastructure. Rooted in Latin American, Caribbean and diasporic communities, it develops exhibitions, residencies, festivals, public programmes, professional development initiatives and opportunities for artists and cultural workers. Through projects in Berlin and across Germany, as well as transnational collaborations, Karne Kunst creates spaces for migrant, feminist, FLINTA and historically underrepresented practices while building networks, resources and long-term structures that support cultural production and participation.

Bardo Curatorial Residency

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A curatorial development programme created at Bardo Projektraum to support emerging and mid-career curators working across migrant, queer, decolonial and intersectional perspectives. The residency combines mentorship, workspace, research time, studio and institutional visits, professional networking, public presentations and production support, allowing participants to develop projects in direct dialogue with Berlin’s independent art ecosystem. Longer residencies can culminate in an exhibition at Bardo, while shorter formats include talks, workshops and other public activations. Priority has been given to FLINTA curators and practitioners from the Global South, positioning the programme as a platform for curatorial development, international exchange and access to networks that are often difficult to enter from outside Berlin.

Resonance Residency

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A two-month European music residency created and directed by Marcela Villanueva for FLINTA musicians with migrant backgrounds living across Europe. Funded through LiveMX and co-funded by the European Union, the programme was hosted at Projektraum Coswig and combined accommodation, travel support, mentoring, professional workshops, collaborative sessions, paid public performances in Coswig and Berlin, and professional studio recording. Designed to address structural barriers faced by underrepresented musicians, Resonance provided participants with time, space, resources and industry connections to develop new work, strengthen their professional practice and expand their visibility within the European music scene.

Projektraum Coswig

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A rural centre for artistic creation and residencies in Coswig (Anhalt), Sachsen-Anhalt, created by Marcela Villanueva in collaboration with Lucas Dima as part of Karne Kunst’s cultural infrastructure. Located between Dessau and Wittenberg, the 330 m² live-work space provides accommodation, studios, shared working areas and outdoor space for national and international artists, curators and researchers. Conceived as a bridge between metropolitan and rural cultural contexts, Projektraum Coswig supports long-term artistic processes, experimentation and community exchange, with a particular focus on migrant, FLINTA, feminist and socially engaged practices. It has hosted and developed residency programmes including Art is Urgent, NEST, FlussLab and Resonance, combining artistic production with care, ecology, professional development and international exchange

Vierte Welle Film Festival

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

International feminist film festival launched in Berlin in 2019, combining screenings, workshops and discussions and adapting through in-person, online and hybrid editions.

Sorora e.V.

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A feminist cultural organisation co-founded by Marcela Villanueva in Berlin to develop programmes, resources and professional opportunities for FLINTA artists and cultural workers, particularly those with migrant and transnational backgrounds. Through Sorora, Villanueva has worked on the conception, funding and implementation of long-term initiatives including Vierte Welle, ABC Kultur / ABC Incuba and Resonance Residency, combining programme design, mentoring, cultural management and community-building. Sorora represents a key strand of her practice focused on building organisational structures that enable underrepresented cultural practitioners to access networks, develop projects and sustain their work.

Born Digital

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A digital art exhibition and experimental curatorial platform developed by Karne Kunst to explore how artworks created natively in digital environments could be exhibited without reproducing the conventions of a physical gallery. Selected through an international open call focused on digital art and STEAM practices, the project brought together Linh Dao, ibz, Julia Vergazova & Nikolya Ulyanov, Perla Mata Chairez, and Victoria Lazcano de la Lastra & Carolina Boettner. Their works explored migration and memory, audio-reactive visualisation, machine learning and environmental relationships, digital archives and censorship, and interactive approaches to sound and time. The exhibition was presented in a purpose-built browser-based 3D environment designed and programmed by Lucas Dima, whose architecture was adapted to the technical and conceptual requirements of each artwork rather than attempting to replicate a conventional gallery space.

Flame Zine

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A transfeminist independent publishing platform developed by Karne Kunst and Sorora e.V. from 2020, creating space for artistic and written practices often underrepresented in mainstream cultural publishing. Through thematic collective issues and artist-focused editions, Flame Zine brought together illustration, photography, comics, poetry, essays, performance, video and experimental writing, with particular attention to migrant, Black, Indigenous, queer, trans, non-binary and disabled perspectives. Editorial and artistic direction was initially led by María Victoria Rodríguez, later joined by Carla Abilés. Contributors across its editions included Titihoon, Martina Haro, Dyuti Mittal, Agustina Garro, Candela Medina, Esdian, Alicia Morán, Cynthia Gabbay, Laura Sussini, Rocío Genovese, Camila Camélia, Larissa Merzthal and others. Editions such as Cuerpx / Body, Magic, Deseo—developed in collaboration with Berlin-based poetry platform Pasajero del Muro—and Diverse expanded the project into a sustained space for self-publishing, artistic exchange and intersectional transfeminist expression.