In the Andean Indigenous language of Quechua, Tupananchiskamameans “until life brings us together again”. According to the Museum of Anthropology at UBC (MOA) website, it “reflects an ancestral view of life and death as part of a continuous cycle”.
“In Andean philosophy, death is not an end but a transformation,” the MOA states.
This helps explain why the museum’s newest exhibition is called Tupananchiskama: Ancient Andean Cosmovision, which runs from March 19 until January 3, 2027. Comprised of nearly 100 pre-Columbian ceremic, textile, bone, and wood works, it highlights the Andean spiritual understanding of the universe.
Some of these artistic works date back more than 2,500 years. Former UBC professor of Indigenous American Art Alan R. Sawyer (1919-2002) donated these pieces to the MOA. Over the course of his academic career, Sawyer took several trips to Peru. The exhibition is guest curated by Peruvian Luis Manuel González, an adjunct professor in the UBC Department of Anthropology,
“Tupananchiskama is rich in circular symbolism—a salutation that carries within it an assurance that the person bidding farewell will see that person or being again,” González said in a news release. “I hope to bring this same sentiment to the exhibition itself.
“As a Peruvian, I was enacting the promise of Tupananchiskama when coming to these ancient belongings—meeting my ancestors and reanimating their lived experience through the curation of this collection,” he continued. “As a conduit for learning and connection, the exhibition invites visitors from Vancouver and beyond to reflect on the teachings of their own ancestors. I believe there is hope, beauty, and stillness in this form of connection to our past.”
Tupananchiskama exhibition details
The Museum of Anthropology at UBC (MOA) presents Tupananchiskama: Ancient Andean Cosmovision from March 19 until January 3, 2027. For more information visit the MOA website.
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