Post-Columbian Arts and Crafts

Ceramics, sculptures and paintings; simplicity, love and inspiration. These six words describe what seven women do day after day in the La Mano collective art workshop, created more than two years ago by Tatané Durán.

"The workshop is the heart of our art gallery located in Caracoles Street . That's where we are developing our own style and merging it with pre-Columbian themes to be transformed somehow into post-Columbian arts and crafts", said Tatané, who was selected as one of Region Two's outstanding women last year.

The interesting thing about this "movement" . is that it rescues the ancient skill of modeling by hand, creating unique single pieces. "We place a lot of importance on developing modeling technique. The difference compared to what used to be done is that we work at high temperature. Besides, each of us works articles that have a practical use and are not just decorative", explained the ceramist, who has been working in this field for more than six years.

This group's achievements include especially their participation in the Research and Innovation competition of the UNESCO Arts and Crafts Award for Latin America and the Caribbean . The sculpture by Carolina González, "Estatuilla Protectora" (Protecting Statuette), of the La Mano collective art workshop, was selected from Region Two and was presented in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil .

"This makes our workshop very proud. But the most important thing for us is "doing". And by that I mean doing works; doing research and forming other people so that they can then join our group", asserted Tatané.

Likewise, another of last year's milestones was the "Collective Showing of Ceramics and Painting", organized by the collective and set up in the Padre L'Paige Archaeological Museum , which formed part of research performed by various artists and supported by the Government and the Institute of Archaeological Research of the Catholic University of the North.

Tatané Durán's project for the future is to create a workshop for people from the Atacaman community, "so that they, from their own perspective and that of their ancestors, can rescue the "post" of Atacaman art", she concluded.

veronica@sanpedroatacama.com