Cañar: A Year in the Highlands of Ecuador

224 Pages·16.191 MB·English

by  Judy Blankenship

cañar

Cañar
A Year in the Highlands of Ecuador
j u d y b l a n k e n s h i p
university of texas press
Austin
copyright©2005bytheuniversityoftexaspress
Allrightsreserved
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Firstedition,2005
Requestsforpermissiontoreproducematerialfromthiswork
shouldbesenttoPermissions,UniversityofTexasPress,
Box7819,Austin,TX78713-7819.
(cid:9)Thepaperusedinthisbookmeetstheminimumrequirements
ofansi/nisoz39.48-1992(r1997)(PermanenceofPaper).
libraryofcongresscataloging-in-publicationdata
Blankenship,Judy,(date)
Cañar:ayearinthehighlandsofEcuador/JudyBlankenship.
p. cm.
isbn0-292-70928-5(hardcover:alk.paper)—
isbn0-292-70639-1(pbk.:alk.paper)
1.CañariIndians—Ritesandceremonies. 2.CañariIndians—
Sociallifeandcustoms. 3.CañariIndians—Pictorialworks.
4.Cañar(Ecuador:Province)—Sociallifeandcustoms. I.Title.
f3722.1.c2b53 2004
305.898'09866'23—dc22
2004010930
frontispiece: cañar landscape
o
For Michael, always at my side,
for Cosmo and Paiwa,
the next generation
and in memory of
Mama Vicenta Quishpilema Pichisaca
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
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Contents
acknowledgments ix
introduction 1
chapter one OldFriends 7
chapter two KillaRaymi:FestivaloftheMoon 17
chapter three AHouseinCañar 27
chapter four TheDayoftheDead 35
chapter five LaLimpieza 43
chapter six ADinnertoHonortheDead,andUs 51
chapter seven TheMeeting 61
chapter eight GreetingtheNewYear 69
chapter nine LifeinCañaratThreeMonths 77
chapter ten DíadeSanAntonio 85
chapter eleven ThisCameraPleasesMe 91
chapter twelve TheNewEconomy 101
chapter thirteen ADeathinCañar 109
chapter fourteen Carnaval 121
chapter fifteen Betrothal,CañariStyle 133
Can˜ar
chapter sixteen LifeinCañaratSixMonths 141
chapter seventeen AWedding 151
chapter eighteen MamaMichiGoestoCanada 161
chapter nineteen TheWayThingsWork 169
chapter twenty ABirthinCañar 175
chapter twenty-one WeWalktheIncaTrail 187
chapter twenty-two SayingGood-bye 201
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Acknowledgments
Above all, my profound thanks go to those Cañari individuals who have
greatly enriched my life, both professionally and personally. José Miguel
Acero and Antonio Guamán, my first photography students, welcomed
me as a teacher and introduced me to the Cañari culture.Their families
graciously,ifcautiously,receivedmypartnerMichaelJenkinsandmeinto
theirmidst,allowedmetomaketheirportraits,andwithtimebecameour
good friends. In1992, afterour first year in Ecuador, Isidoro Quinde and
María Juana Chuma invited us to work in Cañar as volunteers with their
newlyformedorganization,INTI(NationalInstituteofIndigenousTech-
nology).Withouttheseearlyfriendships,Iwouldneverhavebeengiventhe
opportunitytophotographintheindigenouscommunitiesaroundCañar,
muchlessundertakeadecade-longdocumentationproject.
AFulbrightgrantforteachingandresearchallowedustoreturntoEcua-
dorin2000.Awardsfromseveralotherinstitutions,includingtheOrgani-
zationofAmericanStates,theOregonArtsCommission,andtheThanks
Be to GrandmotherWinifred Foundation, made it possible to extend our
staytoayear.InQuito,thanksgotoSusanaCabezadeVaca,executivedi-
rectorof the Fulbright Commission, whowelcomed us sowarmly, and to
SusanaChiriboga,programcoordinator,whotookcareofsomanydetails
tosoftenourlanding.
The Cultural Affairs Program of the United States Embassy in Quito,
thendirectedbySusanCrystal,fundedfivephotographyworkshopsinin-
digenouscommunitiesaroundEcuadorin2000–2001.Iowespecialthanks
to Marta Alban, who as cultural affairs assistant was instrumental in lay-
ing the groundwork for theworkshops and helped at every stage to make
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