Textile as Matrix for the Development of Visual Arts in the Andes

Abstract

The observation that numerous geometric designs on artwork of various media from several pre-Hispanic cultures of the Peruvian coast appear similar to those found in textiles has been made in the past. The direct links between the designs and textiles, however, has never been examined in detail. As a means to identify the actual sources for this extensive design program, the author shows how the understanding of some present weaving practices from the Andean highlands can help in the decipherment of this relationship, and in particular in the reconstruction of the warp-faced techniques underlying their creation. In use in the highlands since at least the Early Horizon, these techniques are not a recent invention, though we know only a few examples from the period. The numerous reproductions of these warp-patterned designs made with other media, such as seen on ceramic and metalwork from both the South Coast and the Central Coast of Peru at the end of the Early Horizon and during the Early Intermediate Period, provide new means to reveal and analyse the relationship not only between media, but between the cultures of the coast and the highlands at periods when they are not easy to detect, due to the lack of material and the subtle evidence of their interaction. These warp-faced textiles have played an important role in the history of Andean art and they should now take their rightful place in being recognized for their contribution to the development of Andean culture and history.