Afafán de ngenes del Chaitén

I’m honored to have painting hung at Museo de Sitio de Chaitén. This was made possible through the efforts of the museum and Dr. Rodrigo Fernandez at University of Chile.

In September, 2024, I completed an Artist at Sea residency with Schmidt Ocean Institute. For three weeks I had the honor to live onboard the Falkor (too) off the coast of southern Chile. My role was to make art that communicated the research being done, the project was an international collaboration led by Dr. Sebastian Watt, and titled Fire and Ice: Volcanic and Glacial Interactions. Learn more about my participation here!

This painting shows the town of Chaitén, and the Chaitén Volcano, featuring rerouted Blanco River and the new delta at the coast. These, among many other massive changes are told in this piece through the cultural lens of the local Mapuche people. This piece features Pincoya (the water spirit) and Pillan (the volcano spirit) and their role in both creating and destroying. Along the border is the Cruz Simétrica, a complex symbol for the Mapuche that connects people and spirits, representing the bond between the sky, rain, and life, from what I understand.

Meaning of "Afafán de ngenes del Chaitén" — Afafán refers to a powerful ceremony to scare away evil spirits. Ngenes are the most powerful spirits on earth, the spirits of nature, whether they create or destroy. Thus, this title refers to the duality of the Mapuche world. After the eruption of the Chaitén volcano, both the people and the spirits prayed to bring peace and protection back to the territory. This title was conceived by Danny Leviñanco, the teacher on board the scientific vessel Falkor (too), who is Mapuche and originally from the inner sea of the Chiloé Archipelago. She witnessed the eruption of the Chaiten Volcano and was deeply moved by the power of nature and its impact on people.