Mujuxi' ri q'ijes y ri jok'ib'es: lo que me nace del corazón (Art Encounter)
Prayer and message of love for the Circle, myself, God, my community, the universe: Mental photograph written
I am beyond-words grateful for the circle I was a part of with a community of both Anishinaabe and Mayan K'iche nation Indigenous leaders and members, that opened the Mayan Art exhibition in the Textiles Museum of Canada in Tkaronto.
The ofrenda performance by the artist and Indigenous leader Diego Ventura Puac-Coyoy, really set the tone of the whole exhibition for me. As members of the crowd asked him the different elements he held in his ofrenda, he was giving it to them, while naming the value they have for his community (their land, food, money, etc), as they planted flowers in his clothes and sleeves, while everyone watched. I couldn't help but think on how this action could signify the value of the stolen land, items, knowledge and people settlers have taken from indigenous peoples, from Turtle Island to Abya Yala and beyond.
The circle of the Mayan community with the Anishinaabe leader is impossible to put into words. Through the burning of incense, a familiar scent reminiscent of home, and prayers in Spanish and Mayan (K'iche Mayan, I'm almost sure), they did an ofrenda and prayed for their ill leader "Tata Bartolo Alvarez", as well as us, and we prayed for all of our intentions. It was with a heavy heart but as well as a lot of joy in the celebration of Mayan art, celebration, culture and tradition that this exhibition was opened. The last bit that made it even more special was the performance of Marimba by Mayan Guatemalan UofT Professor Pedro, who also revives indigenous languages of Guatemala, a specific dialect of Mayan. The cherry on top was the tamales made by Transita, one of the Indigenous members who came from Guatemaya, she made for all of us (she'll host a tamales workshops which I need to attend soon). Savouring the hand-made tamales and hot cocoa really overwhelmed me with a feeling of warmth and familiarity, the taste of the authentic and love-charged corn, almost made me tear up, but really filled me with the joy and peace I needed. All of the prayers, the significance of every action, the community's generous hearts to share so much of their thoughts, energy and love with us really moved me, and allowed my body and mind to move in a slower, more aware and loving pace as I biked back home. I really wish to share this experience with as much people as possible, and I'm grateful for whatever desire that drove me to attend this celebration today.
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So, the Textile Museum of Canada had a public (FREE) exhibition opening for the work of Diego Ventura Puac-Coyoy:
Beyond the Vanishing Maya: Voices of a Land in Resistance
This exhibition aimed to give visibility and power of self-determination and self-representation to the Mayan culture in Guatemala, Latin America and in the Diaspora by showing how they are STILL HERE, vivid, alive and creating, refuting the myth of the Mayans as an ancient civilization.
It was incredibly powerful, not only because of every work's challenge to the colonial canon and ideals of art, narratives and representation, and stories, but every textile and every single story, has a detail and an effort that is beyond my words and understanding. It is important for me to see this work as Indigenous arts, especially those that use textile, is largely seen in Latin America as artesanías, or "crafts", lowering down its status of art works, parallel to the experience of indigenous peoples' in the colonial idea of racial hierarchy, seen as the lowest level of the pyramid, applied in Guatemalan and other LatAm governments to indigenous communities in the region. This undervalue of Indigenous art as "crafts" is mostly recognized for the convince of the politics and social acceptance, to perform inclusion and progress, but it's all a myth. The fact that I'm seeing Mayan Art's large trajectory of works exhibited in such a large scale and recognition, first in North America than in my own context, makes me kind of sad.
However, encountering and having the opportunity to meet the artist and his community, alongside many artists supportive of this exhibition and their works is very recharging and inspiring. I am very lucky to have witnessed this exhibition in its opening; from a large body of works from the first Mayan artist, Rosa Elena, to the curator himself, works of Mayan Indigenous heritage, from Latin America, and featuring textiles, really gave me another layer of deeper understanding on the significance of these historical tradition and technologies that bear paramount meaning for Indigenous communities and the whole Abya Yala region.
My favourite pieces include:
- "Linaje" and "Mujer Indígena" poems
- The burned Spanish flag painting (iconic)
- Mayan fashion with BDSM gear (iconic x2)
- El indigena aceptable (portrait of Mayan women making textiles, role of mayan textiles as Artesanias rather than art in Guatemala)
- La ofrenda
- Mayan "Jesus and Apostles)
- Self-Determination huge portraits of Mayan leaders, challenging and reversing the European/Western portrait tradition honouring colonizers and monarchs, creating a new art canon for Indigenous elders and leaders
- Self-portrait from artist (phenomenal detail and narrative is extremely substantial and rich in color, form, gesture...)
Regarding textile methodologies and traditions, they use a specific technique of weaving and telares that use fibres that are hand dyed and integrated into its whole composition. It requires tools and a mechanism that is not only done by hand. It made me realize the intergenerational passing of this tradition within Indigenous communities, is not something to learn overnight in a workshop. And the detail and effort is palpable ion every thread, every color-line combination, and the power it evokes when applied to cultural attire and important fashion in Mayan culture celebrations and important positions in the community.
Oscar Perén, “Yo, Autorretrato pintando, Comalapa”, 2000. Textile Museum of Canada. https://textilemuseum.ca/event/beyond-the-vanishing-maya-voices-of-a-land-in-resistance/
Diego Isaías, “Destrucción del Uracan Mich en Guatemala”, 2020, oil on canvas. Textile Museum of Canada. https://textilemuseum.ca/event/beyond-the-vanishing-maya-voices-of-a-land-in-resistance/
Bibliography
Ventura Puac-Coyoy, Diego. "Beyond the Vanishing Maya: Voices of a Land in Resistance." Textile Museum of Canada, 2024. https://textilemuseum.ca/event/beyond-the-vanishing-maya-voices-of-a-land-in-resistance/
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