The Banco de la República Cultural Center in Quibdó is located in the city center on the banks of the Atrato River, in the central bank’s building on the corner of the Centennial Park, next to the San Francisco de Asís cathedral. Since its inauguration, the center has focused its programming on strengthening and sharing cultural processes and a sense of citizenship in the department of Chocó. Through its venues and cultural offerings, it has promoted dialogues of knowledge and encounters around themes of reading, music, heritage, and visual arts.
The Cultural Center has a general reading room for consulting the library's catalogue of more than 28,000 titles in addition to the catalogue of Banco de la República’s Library Network. It also contains a multipurpose room with capacity for 180 people that has hosted concerts of chamber music and Colombian and Latin American music as well as temporary art, bibliographic, and Gold Museum exhibitions. Finally, a children's room hosts workshops and activities to promote reading. Through these spaces and services, we seek to strengthen and energize the national and regional culture, supporting the dissemination of the cultural heritage of the region.
History
In 1938, the Banco de la República building in Chocó was built. Located in the northeast corner of Centennial Park, the construction broke with the traditional landscape of wooden houses that had characterized this part of Quibdó for several decades. The building constructed by the company Cornelissen y Salcedo from Barranquilla was a simple, yet innovative project in the region given its materials and architecture.
In 1987, the Banco de la República Cultural Center in Quibdó was created within the central bank’s building. Since its inception, it has focused its programming on strengthening and disseminating cultural processes and a sense of citizenship in the department of Chocó.
In 2011 the offices were remodeled and adapted in order to expand the spaces available and provide users with tools that fit their needs. On October 24, 2011, the Cultural Center’s library began its operations on the third floor of the building while remaining works were completed. Various architectural and technical interventions took place, including extensions, remodeling, and maintenance of the electrical and hydraulic network, reconstruction of the façade, and remodeling of the administrative areas.
In September 2012, the new Cultural Center opened to the public with the adaptations in each of its spaces. One of the most important achievements of the center in terms of infrastructure is the children's room, which was not only enlarged but also acquired a special character thanks to the architectural designs that allow users to revel in the landscape of Chocó, its rivers, jungles, and natural richness.
