DepartmentLatin America

Mascarilla

NameMask

Maker Olinda Silvano Inuma de Arias (Shipibo-Konibo)

CultureShipibo-Conibo

Date2021

Place madeLima, Peru, South America

MediumCotton, ink, elastic, plastic clips, thread

Dimensions13.97H x 2.54W x 15.24D cm
5 1/2H x 1W x 6D in

Credit LineMuseum of International Folk Art, IFAF Collection, FA.2022.3.1

Object numberFA.2022.3.1

ProvenanceAmy Groleau purchased directly from the artist, then artist personally delivered to the museum

DescriptionDetailed cotton face mask. Orange, black. Made for COVID-19 pandemic.

The dynamic geometric designs of the Shipibo-Konibo are known as kené, based
on the snake of their creation story. The lines represent rivers and mountains, and
the shapes embody animals of their Amazonian ancestral homelands. The lines
and shapes on this mask were “sung” by artist/activist Olinda Silvano as they
were stitched in thread. These masks are a symbol of the high COVID-19 infection
and mortality rates in Silvano’s urban Shipibo-Konibo community, Cantagallo,
in Lima. At the same time, the kené designs are a testament to Shipibo-Konibo
resilience, as Cantagallo has endured the pandemic, a destructive fire in 2016,
and years of displacement, dispossession, and discrimination (from exhibition label text).