Photos, souvenirs and artistic interventions celebrate China's centenary

Montevideo, 14 Mar Black and white images, memories of different moments in her life and artistic interventions make up an exhibition that, as of this Monday, pays tribute to the most international Uruguayan actress, Concepción 'China' Zorrilla, who would have turned 100 on March 14. In an interview with Efe, art historian Magdalena Cerantes, who is responsible for studying the life and work of the protagonist of films such as “Waiting for the carriage” or “Elsa and Fred” for the assembly of this exhibition, defines the actress as “an extremely brave, transgressive, modern woman for the time”. Based on the interviews she had with family and close to the artist and the research in various archives, Cerantes did an investigation not aimed “at deepening her artistic career, but in life” but in which it was necessary “to understand the importance of China as an actress and what differentiated her from other actresses of the time. “. The massive opening of the exhibition “China: Senseless Enthusiasm” took place at the Zorrilla Museum, which was the summer home of his grandfather, the poet Juan Zorrilla de San Martín, father of sculptor José Luis Zorrilla de San Martín (progenitor of 'China') and was attended by Ana Ribeiro, the Uruguayan Undersecretary for Education and Culture. “She defined herself as a foolish enthusiast and I think that was a bit of the engine that guided her through her life. That enthusiasm that could sometimes be senseless in a good way, because that made her take risks that were necessary,” Cerantes said. The exhibition tells the biography of the Uruguayan actress through the eyes of six visual artists, who establish their creations in five thematic axes and who see her works accompanied by Zorrilla's images. Endowed with an exceptional sense of humor, which, according to her relatives, she showed even if she didn't want to, she starred in great roles in theater and television, but without a doubt it is films such as “Waiting for the carriage” (1985) or “Elsa and Fred” (2005) that left their mark on the hearts of the audience. Born in 1922 in Montevideo, where she died in 2014, she is also beloved in Argentina, where she lived for several years. He was part of the cast of the Comedy Nacional, where he played alongside the Spanish Margarita Xirgu, and had an important - although less well-known - musical facet. Cerantes precisely commented that, “in addition to being a great pianist, she sang very well, composed song lyrics for different programs, translated lyrics”, which means that “that aspect was very important in her life”. apf-cmm/scr/cfa