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Cecilia Vicuña

Minga for the Sea
HOVEDBILDE Cecilia Vicuna Beach Ritual Coast of Athens documenta 14 2017 Photos by Christian Chierego

Minga for the Sea is an ambitious exhibition by the internationally acclaimed artist Cecilia Vicuña, developed specifically for Kunstnernes Hus. The project builds bridges between Indigenous groups in the southern and northern regions of the globe who stand at the frontline against resource extraction and pollution in their local marine environments. Through an exhibition centered on a large horizontal quipu, which incorporates elements from various local struggles, connections and solidarity are forged between South and North – in a shared defense of the sea, the foundation of all life on Earth.

Minga (Quechua): collective work for a shared purpose

Quipu (Quechua): knot; a pre-literate communication system developed in Andean regions, in which information was encoded in knots

About the artist

Cecilia Vicuña is a Chilean poet, artist, activist, and filmmaker whose work addresses ecological destruction, human rights, and cultural erasure. Exiled since the 1970s, she co-founded Artists for Democracy in London. She coined “Arte Precario” (precarious art) for her ephemeral works made from debris, including her spatial quipus that reinvent an ancient Andean knot-based system. Blending art, poetry, and ritual, her practice fosters awareness of interconnectedness. Vicuña has exhibited at major institutions worldwide, including Tate Modern and the Guggenheim, and participated in documenta 14 and the Venice Biennale. She has published over 30 books and received the 2022 Golden Lion at the Venice Biennial and Chile’s 2023 National Visual Arts Award.

The exhibition is kindly supported by the Savings Bank Foundation DNB, Nordic Cultural Fund, and Fritt Ord.

See also