Presentation and screening of the documentary Science of Women: Experience in the Textile Chain from the Ayllu Mayor Qaqachaka by Elvira Espejo Ayca, part of the Articulations Studies Program. Held on 27 March 2024 at the IVAM Centre Julio González.
In the context of the economic crisis that hit Bolivia in the 1980s, Andean shepherd communities independently initiated a process to improve their textile production, including a program to rescue the region’s natural dyes. With minimal resources, the comunarios purchased pots and beaters and began consulting elders about their traditional practical knowledge in ancestral textile dyeing. Thanks to this ancestral knowledge, they were able to recover the complete process of textile production.
Over a period of ten years, and in coordination with various institutions, members of the APSU textile association (Artesanías per Seguir Units) improved the colors produced by the dyes and diversified their range of pieces. They also built a community textile center with a distinctive—though experimental—architecture, featuring large windows to provide ample light, where weavers could work sheltered from the rain and hold their meetings.
Elvira Espejo Ayca is a distinguished artist, cultural manager, and indigenous researcher. Born in the Ayllu Qaqachaka (Abaroa province, Oruro, Bolivia), her practice is linked to textiles, oral tradition, and poetry, with numerous publications. She is the director of the National Museum of Ethnography and Folklore (MUSEF) and was awarded the Goethe Medal in 2020, an official honor from the Federal Republic of Germany recognizing her work and commitment to cultural exchange. Her work highlights the dialogue between the practice and knowledge of indigenous communities and its intersection with academia, cultural management, and museums.
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