ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
Sarhua is a beautiful rural town in the highlands of Peru’s Ayacucho region. The so-called Tablas de Sarhua (Boards of Sarhua) are some of the area’s most important symbolic objects. From the nineteenth century to the 1970s, the tablas were false beams that hung from the ceiling of Sarhuino homes, painted with motifs referencing ancient Andean religious beliefs and structural systems of reciprocity and social cohesion.
In the second half of the twentieth century, many Sarhuinos migrated to large cities due to serious social and economic crisis. The majority of the migrants settled in Lima, the nation’s capital. Migration forced the rural Sarhuinos to reconcile their own customs and ideologies with those of the urban centers. The move brought loneliness and frustration, but also the hope of a better life. In this new environment, the aesthetic production of the Sarhuino painters changed. In Lima, the Sarhuinos began painting scenes of rural life to record their collective history and former lifestyle. The painters later adapted the format as a means of criticizing political and social injustices and illustrating their personal experiences.
This exhibition explores the history of the Tablas de Sarhua through works developed by Primitivo Evanán Poma and the Asociación de Artistas Populares de Sarhua-ADAPS, as well as works produced by a new generation of Sarhuino painters. This body of work demonstrates how Sarhuino artists reconstructed and reshaped their art and identity by constantly negotiating and reworking their Andean origins and their status as contemporary subjects in a globalized world.
Curated by: Gabriela Germana
Exhibiting Artists: Asociación de Artistas Populares de Sarhua (ADAPS), Primitivo Evanán Poma, Valeriana Evanán Vivanco, Venuca Evanán Vivanco, Violeta Yupari Quispe, Cecilia Berrocal Gómez, Teófanes Pomasoncco
This exhibition was funded in part by The Ministry of Culture of Peru.
PROGRAMS
ART IN THE STREET: "TABLAS" MURAL PAINTING
THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2019
5:30PM - 8:30PM
Join us on the street to watch visiting artists Primitivo Evanán, Valeriana Evanán, Venuca Evanán, and UWF Department of Art students paint a "tablas"-style mural on the front of the museum, and learn more about the history and tradition of tablas paintings. Original artwork by the visiting artists will also be for sale (cash only), and the sounds of authentic Sarhuino music will be piped into the air of downtown Pensacola. Latin American-inspired food truck Arepas will be parked on site to serve up their delicious arepas and papas fritas. This event is free and open to the public.
ART IN THE STREET: "TABLAS" MURAL PAINTING
THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2019
5:30PM - 8:30PM
Join us on the street to watch visiting artists Primitivo Evanán, Valeriana Evanán, Venuca Evanán, and UWF Department of Art students paint a "tablas"-style mural on the front of the museum, and learn more about the history and tradition of tablas paintings. Original artwork by the visiting artists will also be for sale (cash only), and the sounds of authentic Sarhuino music will be piped into the air of downtown Pensacola. Latin American-inspired food truck Arepas will be parked on site to serve up their delicious arepas and papas fritas. This event is free and open to the public.
OPENING RECEPTION
FRIDAY, AUGUST 9, 2019
6:00PM - 8:00PM
Please join us at the Pensacola Museum of Art for the opening reception of Resistance & Change: Tablas of Sarhua, Contemporary Paintings from the Peruvian Andes, where you will have the opportunity to be one of the first to view the exhibition and meet some of the visiting Peruvian artists featured in the exhibition. Food will be provided by newly opened Peruvian-inspired restaurant, Mr. Pollo. This event is free and open to the public.
ARTIST WORKSHOP | TABLAS DE SARHUA
SATURDAY, AUGUST 10, 2019
5:00PM - 7:00PM
PURCHASE TICKETS
Join the Pensacola Museum of Art for an artist-led workshop with Venuca Evanán, an exhibiting artist from our upcoming exhibition, Resistance and Change: Tablas of Sarhua, Contemporary Paintings from the Peruvian Andes. Participants will learn about the history of Tablas paintings in Peruvian culture, enjoy a curator led discussion between Evanán and Gabriela Germana, and work alongside Evanán to create their own work of art based in traditional technique and concepts. $25 per participant, $20 for members, all materials included!