Andrew Mroczek & Juan Barbozo-Gubo | Momias de los Cóndores
Ubicado en los Andes del norte de Perú, a una altitud de 2.335 metros, se encuentra el pueblo de Chachapoyas. La altitud, junto con su clima subtropical, ofrece una combinación única para la región, donde densas nubes y ráfagas de niebla se adentran en bosques densos, la plaza principal del pueblo, las calles y callejones. Fueron los incas, quienes conquistarían a los Chachapoya en el siglo XV, los que llamaron a los habitantes originales "gente de las nubes" en su lengua nativa, el quechua.
Poco se sabe sobre la vida diaria de los Chachapoya, ya que no dejaron registro de un lenguaje escrito. Solo a través de descubrimientos arqueológicos, algunos tan recientes como 2008, los investigadores han comenzado a desentrañar más detalles sobre su cultura. Quizás el descubrimiento más significativo ocurrió en 1997, cuando los arqueólogos descubrieron mausoleos y sarcófagos construidos en los acantilados de la Laguna de los Cóndores, a solo 80 kilómetros al sur de Chachapoyas. Allí, los investigadores encontraron más de 200 cuerpos momificados, muchos de los cuales estaban envueltos en textiles bordados con patrones y rasgos faciales simplificados.
Los arqueólogos creen que los incas retiraron los cuerpos de los Chachapoya preincaicos de estos mausoleos y los reemplazaron con miembros de su élite comunitaria. También se atribuye a los incas el haber reemplazado las prácticas funerarias de los Chachapoya con sus avanzados métodos de momificación. Los altos funcionarios incas eran momificados para seguir siendo parte del mundo de los vivos. Se cree que para los incas estas momias poseían propiedades, participaban en reuniones y ayudaban a tomar decisiones. Los investigadores creen que los cuerpos fueron momificados en posiciones compactas para facilitar el transporte de las momias hacia y desde sus tumbas.
En 2015, los artistas Juan José Barboza-Gubo y Andrew Mroczek (Barboza-Gubo & Mroczek) llegaron a Chachapoyas para fotografiar el lugar donde, en 2013, Joel Molero, un joven gay de 19 años, fue torturado, asesinado y quemado junto a la carretera. La fotografía se convertiría en la imagen de portada de su serie Padre Patria, que registra los sitios de crímenes de odio contra personas LGBTQ en Perú. Fue entonces cuando se enteraron de las momias de la Laguna.
A lo largo del año siguiente, Barboza-Gubo & Mroczek obtuvieron permiso para fotografiar las momias. Regresaron en 2016. Rodeados de más de 200 momias de la Laguna de los Cóndores, Barboza-Gubo & Mroczek las manipularon y posicionaron. Las fotografiaron utilizando solo su cámara, un paño negro y una única fuente de luz. Trabajaron en silencio casi absoluto.
English Translation
Situated in the Andes of northern Peru, at an elevation of 2,335 meters, lies the town of Chachapoyas. The elevation, along with its subtropical climate, provides a unique combination for the region, where thick cloud-cover and bursts of fog nestle into dense forests, and the town’s main square, streets, and alleyways. It was the Inca – who would conquer the Chachapoya in the 15th century – who named the original settlers the “cloud people” in their native Quechua.
Little is known about the daily lives of the Chachapoya, who left no record of a written language. It is only through archeological discoveries – as recent as 2008 – that researchers have begun to uncover more details about their culture. Perhaps the most significant discovery happened in 1997, when archeologists uncovered mausoleums and sarcophagi built into the cliffs of the Laguna de los Cóndores just 80 kilometers south of Chachapoyas. There, researchers found over 200 mummified bodies, many of which were shrouded in textiles embroidered with patterns and simplified facial features.
Archeologists believe that the Inca removed the pre-Inca, Chachapoya bodies from these mausoleums and replaced them with their elite community members. The Inca were also credited for replacing the funerary practices of the Chachapoya with their advanced methods of mummification. High-ranking Inca officials were mummified in order to remain a part of the world of the living. It is believed that for the Inca these mummies held property, participated in meetings, and helped make decisions. Researchers believe that the bodies were mummified in such compact positions as to aid in the ease of transporting the mummies to and from their graves.
In 2015, artists Juan Jose Barboza-Gubo and Andrew Mroczek (Barboza-Gubo & Mroczek) arrived in Chachapoyas to photograph the site where, in 2013, Joel Molero, a 19-year-old gay man was tortured, murdered, and burned along the roadside. The photograph would become the cover image of their Fatherland series, which records the sites of hate crimes against LGBTQ Peruvians. It was then that they were made aware of the mummies of the Laguna.
Over the course of the following year, Barboza-Gubo & Mroczek were granted permission to photograph the mummies. They returned in 2016. Surrounded by over 200 mummies of the Laguna de los Cóndores, Barboza-Gubo & Mroczek handled and positioned them. They photographed them using only their camera, a black cloth, and a single light source. They worked in near silence.
Daphne Confar | Matriarchy
In Matriarchy I acknowledge the power of women. Through my paintings, I strive to capture the subtle emotions and hidden nuances that make each subject relatable, lovable, and deserving of recognition.
Although often overlooked or marginalized in society, every woman carries a unique and valuable story. Portraying women on vintage book covers felt symbolic of that.
In addition to highlighting the individual, my work in this show also delves into the power of home and the landscapes that evoke a sense of the familiar.
By intertwining the themes of matriarchy, sentiments of home, and the evocative force of nostalgia, I aspire to create a body of work that inspires introspection, connection, humor, empathy, and admiration for the resilience and power of women.
Judy Haberl | Hidden Agendas Boutique
A purse is a repository of “necessary stuff”. The opaque skin creates a private sanctuary and assigns a certain intimacy to the contents. It is an uncanny marriage of fashion and function. Do we ever really know what they contain?
Judy Haberl has designed an exquisite high-end Hidden Agendas Boutique. Using molds from vintage purses she has collected over the years, Haberl has fabricated 20 new purses made of Lucite, revealing unusual, not your everyday contents! The History of the purse dates back thousands of years. It was first used by men and in ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics men are shown sporting purses tied around their waists. Fast forward to the 21st century and the purse, still considered a mainstay for a woman, is a desirable accessory which can itself make a statement as to one’s power and wealth.
People have always been fascinated by what a woman carries in her purse. The contents are personal, private, and hidden from view. Haberl’s purses are not for the faint of heart and reveal a wide range of personalities of ominous intent: each purse has a string of pearls, the perfect accessory, but added are small handguns, grenades, rope, dice, handcuffs, and jewelry. Not just the usual tissues, keys and makeup, the contents and Agendas are no longer meek!
Wendy Fullenwider Liszt | Inside Out
Wendy Fulenwider Liszt (born Boston, MA) makes paintings with layers of transluscent and opaque paint, silkscreens representing porous materials, stencils, construction materials, and spray paint. The porous materials allow for travel between interior and exterior spaces. This porousness also speaks to the process of extrusion and the effect of pressure pushing a malleable substance through a fixed material opening from the inside out.
As these layers of material and paint application alternate with abrasive sanding, scraping, and the sensitivity of line, body parts emerge. The visible history of this process is akin to patina, scarring and memory. The mesh of the canvas serves as a skin, both subject and object. Anthropomorphic forms bulge and recede as convex or concave, evoking the bodily experiences of damage and regeneration. This simultaneously deliberate and accidental process is akin to the experiences of the disoriented self after impact, evolving then halting, like lava oozing then solidifying. The layers of porous eroded material, alternating with bulging paint of bodily organs, overlap in their efforts of definition.