Online classes • Martín Chambi: A Unique Perspective, with Leticia Rigat • Traces of an Empire, with Proa's Education Team
• Objects and Narratives, with Carlos Rossi Elgue
• Andean women before and after the hispanic conquest, with Paula Zagalsky
• Antonio Berni on the Path of the Qhapaq Ñan, with Cecilia Rabossi
Martín Chambi: A Unique Perspective, with Leticia Rigat
A key figure in 20th-century photography, Martín Chambi captured the landscapes and transformations of Peruvian society, leaving a unique testament to Andean culture during his time. We explore his work in this first session of the series "The Incas: Beyond an Empire."
Born around 1891 in Coaza—a small village with adobe houses and thatched roofs in the Carabaya Andes, north of Lake Titicaca—Martín Chambi became a crucial figure in 20th-century photography and an outstanding representative of the so-called Cusco School.
He began his work in the 1920s, framing his vision within a context that allowed him to capture both landscapes and the everyday and ceremonial life of native communities. His lens, in constant dialogue with Andean culture, serves as a record that transcends documentary purposes, establishing his work as a landmark in the history of Latin American photography.
This class offers an opportunity to reflect on how photographic images can update and broaden representations of the Incas. Led by photography specialist Leticia Rigat, we explore Chambi's images, analyzing the processes underlying his work.
His photographs invite us to think about how they construct a vision of the "other," and what implications that representation has in relation to the history of Indigenous peoples. In this class, we also place Chambi's work within the context of Indigenous photography in Latin America, addressing other figures and trends that shaped the development of this medium in the region.
We invite you to join this class, which delves into how photography constructs collective imaginaries and preserves the memory of Andean peoples.
Leticia Rigat
Doctor of Social Sciences (UBA), Master’s in Cultural Studies (CEI-UNR), and Bachelor’s in Social Communication (UNR). Currently, she serves as an Assistant Researcher at Conicet and as a senior lecturer in the Workshop on Image, Design, and Communication in the Bachelor’s in Cultural Management program (UNR). She coordinates the Latin American Contemporary Photography Studies Group (UNR) and is a researcher at the Center for Postcolonial Theory Studies (UNR) and the Institute of Critical Studies in Humanities (IECH- Conicet-UNR). Her research activities are closely connected to her artistic production, curatorial work, and cultural management.
Traces of an Empire, with Proa's Education Team
In this class, we focus on observing the materials, production techniques, and utility of the objects displayed in the exhibition. We share images of the pieces, a Quechua glossary to deepen understanding of the terms, and open a space for exchange and dialogue.
We invite you to participate in a virtual activity with Proa’s Education Team to explore the four rooms that comprise The Incas: Beyond an Empire. This exhibition, originally produced by the Museo de Arte de Lima (MALI), brings together over 250 archaeological objects and artworks from public and private collections, many of which have never been displayed before. Proa’s edition, presented in Buenos Aires, incorporates the Argentine territory, tracing the boundaries of the Inca Empire and its memory in the Andean north.
During the class, we focus on the expansion and influence of Inca civilization in the Andean region, culminating in a reflection on the colonial period, when the forms and representations of this culture intertwined with new social and symbolic structures.
In this approximately one-hour activity, we center on the observation of the materials, production techniques, and utility of the objects in the exhibition. We share images of the pieces to appreciate their details, a Quechua glossary to delve into the meaning of key terms, and open a space for exchange and dialogue among participants.
Objects and Narratives, with Carlos Rossi Elgue
Led by Professor and expert in colonial Latin American literature, Carlos Rossi Elgue, we delve into the texts of Inca Garcilaso de la Vega and Guamán Poma de Ayala to analyze how Inca cultural objects were represented, valued in Spanish chronicles, and understood within the Andean worldview.
When Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro and Inca emperor Atahualpa met in Cajamarca around 1532, it marked not only the beginning of the end for the Inca Empire but also a turning point in the history of the Americas: the clash of two profoundly opposing cultures. The differences between these civilizations were staggering, not just in terms of power, technology, and political organization, but also in their values and ways of understanding the world. In this context of victors and vanquished, a new way of perceiving the "other" emerged, initiating a prolonged period of resistance and negotiations between two antagonistic worldviews—one centered on writing, the other on oral tradition.
But how did the earliest chroniclers of the era describe this society where natives and foreigners coexisted? Drawing on the writings of the mestizo chronicler Inca Garcilaso de la Vega and his indigenous counterpart, Guamán Poma de Ayala, this online class—led by Professor and colonial American literature specialist Carlos Rossi Elgue—explores the value of specific objects within the Andean world and examines how they were represented and reinterpreted in Spanish-language accounts.
This class invites participants to reflect on the value of these objects, their transformation over time, and their connection to contemporary questions of identity and memory.
Carlos A. Rossi Elgue holds a degree in Literature from the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and specializes in colonial Latin American literature. He serves as Assistant Professor in the Latin American Literature I "B" Chair and focuses his doctoral research on analyzing documentary sources related to the first explorations and conquest of the Río de la Plata. He has conducted workshops and published articles on these topics, as well as on the reinterpretation of colonial narratives in 19th- and 20th-century rewritings.
Andean women before and after the hispanic conquest, with Paula Zagalsky
What was the role of women in the andean world? In this online class with Paula Zagalsky—a historian and researcher at Conicet specializing in Andean indigenous societies—we discuss the spaces, roles, and tasks undertaken by women from the origins of the Tahuantinsuyu to the colonial period.
The role of women in the Andean world was profoundly shaped by the intersection of indigenous social and cultural structures, especially during the Inca Empire, and the transformations brought about by colonization. Over these periods, women transitioned from active participants in pre-Hispanic society to subjects of subordination during the colonial era.
In pre-Columbian times, women played crucial roles in both domestic and public spheres. Their status varied by social class, but they were generally central to family life and economic activities such as textile production (crafting garments, blankets, and other valuable items for the Inca economy) and agriculture.
Under the Tahuantinsuyu, institutions such as the acllahuasi (houses for selected women) operated. These women, chosen from a young age for their beauty, talent, or purity, lived in seclusion, dedicating themselves to religious activities or textile production. Those from certain lineages also performed specific tasks within the imperial court.
Using selected pieces from the exhibit The Incas: Beyond an Empire, this online class examines objects that highlight the importance of elite Inca women in the political, cultural, and economic dynamics of the empire. Guided by Paula Zagalsky, we also analyze how the conquest impacted their daily lives.
Paula Zagalsky holds a Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate in History from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA). She is a researcher at the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (Conicet, Argentina), based at the Institute for Gender Studies (IIEGE) at UBA’s Faculty of Philosophy and Literature. She teaches in the History of Colonial America course at UBA and has also taught pre-Hispanic history and at institutions such as the Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento and the Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires. Zagalsky was a doctoral and postdoctoral fellow at Conicet, the Paris Municipality (Mairie de Paris) at IHEAL/CREDA (Sorbonne Nouvelle-Paris 3/CNRS), and AMEXCID at El Colegio de México. Her research focuses on colonial Latin American history and Andean indigenous societies, with an emphasis on the history of mining and labor in Potosí and southern Andes. Recently, her work has explored women’s roles in Potosí’s labor history. She has published articles in national and international journals and, in 2023, released two books:
- Obedecer, negociar y resistir. Tributo y mita indígena en Potosí, siglos XVI y XVII (Lima: IEP/Peru’s Central Bank).
- Potosí in the Global Silver Age (16th-19th Centuries, co-edited with Rossana Barragán Romano (Leiden: Brill), set to be published in Spanish by Prometeo in 2025.
Antonio Berni on the Path of the Qhapaq Ñan, with Cecilia Rabossi
Licensed in Arts from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), independent curator, and current General Secretary of the Argentine Association of Art Critics, Cecilia Rabossi unveils in this visit the behind-the-scenes story of the journey Antonio Berni undertook around 1940 to explore the Indigenous peoples of South America. Rabossi is currently conducting an exhaustive research project on this pivotal chapter in the work of the Rosario-born artist, in celebration of the 120th anniversary of his birth in 2025.
Around the 1940s, Antonio Berni decided to embark on a journey through South America with the goal of connecting with the continent's cultural roots. Thanks to a scholarship granted by the National Commission of Culture, the Rosario-born artist was able to travel and study both the legacy of pre-Hispanic peoples and the colonial art of various regions in the northern part of the continent.
Berni departed from Argentina, following the routes once traveled by the Andean peoples, particularly the Qhapaq Ñan, the network of roads that connected the territories of the Inca Empire. During his travels through Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia, the artist dedicated himself to writing and sketching the scenes and traditions he encountered along the way.
This connection with Indigenous cultures allowed him to expand his creative horizons and understand the history of these peoples, elements that would later have a significant impact on his work. Berni not only explored colonial art but also became deeply interested in the identity and historical processes of Latin American communities, which was reflected in his research and in how his work engaged with the social context of the region.
To commemorate the upcoming 120th anniversary of Berni’s birth, which will be celebrated in 2025, Rabossi has focused on investigating this key phase of Berni’s work, now sharing her findings with the public in this unmissable event.
Cecilia Rabossi
Licensed in Arts, University of Buenos Aires. An independent curator, she develops research, production, and curatorial projects for exhibitions in Argentina and abroad. She is currently the General Secretary of the Argentine Association of Art Critics and a professor in the Master's program in Curatorial Studies at UNTREF. Her recent curatorial projects include: Joaquín Torres García. El descubrimiento de sí mismo (Museum of Contemporary Art Atchugarry, Punta del Este, 2024); León Ferrari. Recurrencias (National Museum of Fine Arts, 2023); Photographs by Augusto Ferrari in the Fine Arts Collection (National Museum of Fine Arts, 2023); Jerónimo Veroa. Memoria de un lugar (Provincial Museum of Contemporary Art – MAR, 2022); Berni. Ramona y otras Mujeres (Traveling Exhibition, 2018–2022); Leandro Katz. The Project for The Day You’ll Love Me and the Dance of Ghosts (MUAC, Mexico City, 2019); Xul Solar. Panactivist (National Museum of Fine Arts, Buenos Aires, 2017 / Carrillo Gil Art Museum, Mexico City, 2017), among others. She is the author and co-author of books, chapters, and articles on Argentine and Latin American art.