Celebrating Cultural Resilience: My Journey with “Las INNOMBRABLES”

My name is Deny Ruge. I am a Colombian dancer, creator, and researcher currently based in London. As a third-year student in the BA (Hons) Diverse Dance Styles at IRIE! Dance theatre, I also direct the Somos Chibchas Arts dance company, which I founded in Madrid in 2010. My mission is to preserve Colombian heritage through dance, theatre, and other artistic expressions. My work focuses on memory, identity, and cultural resilience.

Fundraising for “Las INNOMBRABLES”

Today, I am excited to share my fundraising efforts for my research project, “Las INNOMBRABLES” (The Unnameed). This creative and decolonial journey aims to recover the erased memory of Indigenous, Afro-Colombian, and mestizo women from southern Colombia, particularly the Ñapangas. These remarkable women played crucial roles in community life, cultural creation, and historical resistance. Unfortunately, their stories have been silenced by colonisation and patriarchy.

Honouring Forgotten Legacies

This project employs dance, oral narratives, historical research, and community participation to honour their legacy. It seeks to reconnect their stories with the territory that gave them birth. Through movement and memory, “Las INNOMBRABLES” becomes both a tribute and an act of symbolic reparation.

The importance of this project cannot be overstated. By bringing these stories to light, we celebrate the resilience and strength of women who have shaped our cultural landscape. Their contributions deserve recognition and respect.

Acknowledging Support

I am thrilled to announce that I recently received the 2026 Anna Carlisle Award for Dance Training, granted by the Lisa Ullmann Travel Grant Fund (UK). This award will partially fund my research trip to Ipiales, Nariño. However, the total cost of travel, accommodation, and work remains insufficient. The expenses for fieldwork exceed the amount covered by the grant. Therefore, I am now seeking additional support to make this trip possible.

Your contribution, whether large or small, will directly support my work with local artists, tradition bearers, and communities that keep the memory of La Guaneña alive. By supporting this project, you help recover the voices of the women who forged our cultural memory but were never recognized.

Join the Movement

💛Support the campaign:

https://gofund.me/6a30c9f6b

Thank you for believing in art, research, and collective memory. Together, we can ensure that “Las INNOMBRABLES” are finally remembered as a fundamental part of our history.