Zarigüeya/Alabado Contemporáneo

How can contemporary art engage a collection of pre-columbian artefacts? And what is at stake in such a dialogue? Zarigüeya/Alabado Contemporáneo, an experimental curatorial project started in 2016 by Manuela Ribadeneira, Manuela Moscoso, and Pablo Lafuente in collaboration with the Museo de Arte Precolombino Casa del Alabado in Quito, probes these questions. In Tiempo de Zarigüeyas (Season of the possums), each of the six artists (Asier Mensizabal, Osías Yanov, Adrián Balseca, Caroline Achaintre, Tamar Guimarães, Gonzalo Vargas M.) reconsiders their creative process. The three curators reflect on the impact of the initiative, and art critic and curator Ana Rosa Valdez places the project in the larger context of contemporary Latin American art. Edited by Sarah Demeuse, the publication also features ample photographic documentation of the six iterations.