Warmi Chuwas and the resulting pot-sculpture Khipu www.ecdperu.plus.com/vida

After finishing a BA in Latin American Cultural Studies in London, I started to take the making of ceramic chuwas (pot sculptures) seriously. Because of dyslexia, expressing my creativity through the sculpting of these chuwas was easier than through the medium of writing. My source of inspiration is Mother Earth and what she represents. I also like to explore the social and political history of my country and to navigate between time, space and memory. Through my human subjects (women) I try to bridge the gap between history and present reality in Peru and document things before they are lost forever. Carefully and provocatively I emphasise the forms of the women's bodies, seducing the viewers and involving them in deeper reflection. Pre-columbian Andean sculptors and ceramicists produced great pieces in clay. I follow their tradition, respecting Nature and Mother Earth and I avoid, wherever possible, techniques that disguise the clay. I must add that I am not only following pre-Columbian artists. I also admire outstanding contemporary artists including Fernando Botero and Anthony Gormley. At this stage in my work I hope to be able to contribute also in some way to the project that was started by José María Arguedas, who was Peru’s leading public intellectual, writer, Quechuista, and anthropologist of the mid-twentieth century.