Ecuadorean exhibit shows daily life

A vivid array of paintings from Ecuador is on display now through May 7 at the IU Mathers Museum of World Culture. \nThe exhibit, titled "Emerald, Ruby, and Gold: Contemporary Paintings of an Andean Indigenous Culture," also offers visitors explanations and maps as to the paintings' cultural origins.\nTerra Fuller, a graduate student and curator for the exhibit, explains that these paintings are a relatively recent development. \n"While the Quichua have ancient Incan origins, these paintings are really a new phenomenon," Fuller said. "The Quichua people used to paint on the sides of drums that they would use in festivals. However, around 1970 an art gallery owner in Quito suggested that they paint on something flat so that tourists could take these paintings with them." \nMany of the paintings depict the daily life of the indigenous people in the Andes Mountains. In addition to the everyday scenes, many of the most detailed paintings depict native festivals that mix traditional Catholic and indigenous beliefs, Fuller said. She said an example of this mixing of religious beliefs can be seen in a painting of Adam and Eve. \n"While the painting has the traditional biblical elements of the Adam and Eve story, it also prominently displays a sun, an Incan religious symbol," she said. \nMatthew Sieber, co-curator of exhibits at the Mathers Museum, emphasized the changes that have occurred in the short amount of time that the Quichua have been painting. \n"While it is great that these people are able to profit from their painting, this profitability has changed their community," he said. "Because Tigua is such a remote community and it's difficult for tourists to get there, many of the artists leave to sell their paintings in larger cities."\nAlong with changes in the community, the paintings themselves have changed in subject matter and style. \n"Older paintings have a painted frame around them, which is used as a stretcher for the goat skin canvas. So they paint on what most people consider the 'back' of the canvas," Fuller said. "But as more and more artists go to larger cities to sell their paintings, they are exposed to more contemporary art. In a desire to be taken more seriously as artists, they now paint on the 'front' of the canvas, eliminating the frame." \nGeoffrey Conrad, director of the Mathers Museum, explained that the paintings featured in the exhibit are partly on lease from Fuller and partly components of the Mathers' extensive collection of artifacts. \n"Due to the strength of IU's folklore department, we have acquired a large collection of these types of paintings and artifacts," Conrad said. \nJohn McDowell, professor in the department of folklore and ethnomusicology, had high praise for the paintings and the exhibit. \n"I thought this was an excellent exhibition," he said. "The paintings are wonderful, showing a cross-section of older and newer styles, and illustrating the common themes addressed in this tradition. Even though much of their production today is destined for the tourist trade, they continue to feature scenes of everyday life in the mountains and elements of the indigenous belief system."\nThe Mathers Museum is open 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 1 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free.