Hybridity and Identity was a photographic exhibition organised to think about ideas of hybridity, mixture, mimic, adaptation, authenticity and diversity in the life of people in Llin Llin Pucará, an indigenous community in the Ecuadorian Andes. Capturing both special events and daily activities, the photos presented how elements once foreign, have now become core to the community’s identity.
Drawing on Nestor García Canclini’s theory on the hybridisation of culture, the photos mean to show people’s capacity to incorporate, adapt and own new ideas and practices in their life, which is present in the performance of religious events (integrating Christian beliefs to indigenous custom), entertainment activities as in the rodeo (a colonial inheritance), and in the adaptation and use of new technologies and consumption patterns. The exhibition was formed by twenty pictures. All of them were taken during the fieldwork for the PhD thesis Navigating through a plural-legal system. Indigenous women access to justice in the Ecuadorian Andes.
As part of the showcase, The Exchange gallery and the Department of International Development at King’s College London organised a panel to discuss the use of visual methodologies during fieldwork. The panel was formed by the doctoral candidates Gabriel Garroum Pla, Antonella Mazzone, and Andrea Espinoza, and chaired by Dr Jelke Boesten.
The discussion focus on photography as a way to interact with the people and the communities we study and as method to understand how people interact with their own environment. The public raised several interesting questions about the ethical considerations when taking pictures of people’s lives and the ability or not of a picture or a video to capture ‘reality’ or to create some sort of fiction. This showcase was a first step towards a more ambitious project: the production of a 60 minutes documentary.
Venues and Dates
The Exchange Gallery: Event ended
Exhibition : 2 October - 19 October 2018 King’s College London, Bush House (NE Wing), 30 Aldwich
Panel discussion and reception: 3 October - RSVP Vía Eventbrite
Online Gallery:
Starting November 2018
Our Team
Diana Pacheco
Video essay Co-Director. Diana is a documentary filmmaker based in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Her work has been featured in Visions du reel and DocLisboa during her scholarship in Erasmus’ DocNomads Master Degree program in Budapest. She currently teaches documentary practice at Unviersidad Casa Grande.
Andrea Espinoza
Exhibition photographer and Scholar. Andrea is a doctoral candidate at the Department of International Development, King’s College London. Her research discusses gender violence and legal pluralism in the Ecuadorian Andes. Before joining King’s, she worked as a journalist for Diario El Universo (Ecuador).
Analía Bermeo
Video essay Producer. Analía is a film and documentary producer based in Guayaquil, Ecuador. She has a masters degree on Producing for film and television from Royal Holloway University of London. She currently teaches film production at IGAD and works as a freelance producer for films and cultural events.
Sponsors
Department of International Development Kings College London
King’s Gender Studies Network
Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy
Strategic partners
Instituto Gráfico de Artes Digitales de Guyaquil
Special thanks
Sefla Lema Family, Llin Llin Pucará community, Jayne Peake, Jelke Boesten, Luis Medina, Willie Merchán, Miguel Suárez, Israel Herbas, Gabriela Bustamante, Efraín Paredes, Soledad Gutierrez, Melissa Mejía, María Doménica Herrera, Rodrigo Cisternas and Santiago Toral.