Space, line and story in the invention of an Andean aesthetic

Abstract

This article examines Tiguan painting and the conventions of this new native Andean visual art, its representation of space, and the way it portrays traditional and contemporary material culture. Engaging the problem of alternative modes of spatial perception, the author describes how the act of drawing can become a tool of ethnographic exploration. With insights gained through sketching-mediated encounters with artists, the article shows the relevance to Tiguan art of Ingold’s recent arguments about lines as an organic device of narrative and visual ordering. Where formal spatial perspective offers a vocabulary of hierarchical order — foreground, background, vantage point — lines invoke movement, duration and interchange, which become recurrent issues for Tiguan artists.