Banco de la República presents interactive documentary: 'Beetles: a country discovered by pedalazos'

Cycling is the sport par excellence in Colombia. The one who has generated the most joys and has achieved the most achievements. For that reason, and taking advantage of the fact that the road season has already started and Colombian cyclists are preparing to face the first of the three major events of the year: the Giro d'Italia. The Library Network of the Banco de la República, presented the interactive documentary, “Beetles: a country discovered by pedalazos”.

This project explores the origin, development and iconic moments of national cycling. It is also a journey through the country and its history, told through the deeds of the “beetles” and the mythical stories of the storytellers who accompanied them on Colombian and world roads.

Ana Roda, director of the Library Network Department of the Banco de la República, said in a statement launching the cultural project that, “Cycling, a sport that is practiced all over the world, tells a very story of ours. The bicycle has been the means of work and communication for most of the Colombian people and as a sport, it has been linked to the development of the country since the mid-1950s, when it was almost unthinkable that something like the Vuelta a Colombia could be run by bicycle,” he said.

'Beetles: a country discovered by pedalazos' is made up of three parts: The exhibition has three stages as if it were a race, these are: 'A country discovered by pedalazos', which allows a tour of the Colombian territory from the 1920s to the 1980s.

The second stage is 'The Conquest of Europe', which tells about some of the exploits of Colombian cyclists and their arrival at European competitions and finally, 'The Return', which speaks of the resurgence of Colombian cycling and how it became more competitive in international arenas. “The history of this sport, its narrative and evolution, can be explored, reconstructed and relived with the same emotion through newspapers, magazines, headlines, photographic and audiovisual collections held by different archives and libraries,” said Roda.

This launch was planned to be done in person during 2020, but the pandemic came and changed all plans. This was stated by the official, “it forced us to change the initial plans of having a physical exhibition. Around November last year we started working on a virtual version of the exhibition that took advantage of all the previous research, curation, design and museography work, and added the possibilities of digital language.”

The exhibition will be available at the Luis Ángel Arango Library and can also be seen through the digital platforms of the Banco de la República. In addition, as part of the opening, a discussion will be held between Ricardo Montezuma, Luis Alejandro Díaz and Andrea María Navarrete, which will be moderated by journalist Sinar Alvarado.

The project is based on an exhaustive documentary research of the collections of public libraries in Colombia and some archives of other institutions, it was developed using different formats and media such as photos, documents, audios and videos of the iconic moments of Colombian cycling, which will allow an approach interactive with different audiences.

In addition, the exhibition, which was initially virtual and is still available on the Banrepcultural website, features a variety of digital content such as interviews and conferences with experts in the field and a documentary resource center where biographies, audios, animated video capsules and other elements that motivate the knowledge about cycling in Colombia.

KEEP READING: