THE TUNNEL OF KERAPAMIA: Woman or mother from the mount.
Pabellon, Universidad de los Andes,
Bogota 2023

"Pabellon was an international event that explored practice-based research in the creative disciplines organised by Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia in October 2023. The event provided opportunities for different formats such as performances, exhibitions, lectures, for anyone engaged with Art, Architecture and Design.

I proposed an exhibition: "Fashion's New Weave". At the core of this exhibition for Pabellon was the representation of Embera Chami culture, from the eyes of the trans-women from Karmata Rua , Antioquia.
The aim of the space was to present an atmospheric snapshot of "the Future of Fashion Design" where the collaboration and the participation between the collective and audience happens, where dialogue about design provides an opportunity to listen, be heard, understand and embody new ways of being - together.
The idea for this space was realised in situ by community members Marcela, Roux and Jaima who travelled to Bogota for the event. The original idea was to collect vegetation and spend no money at all on production. The women wanted to recreate the story of Kerapamia a woman turned monster who lives in the vegetations of the mountains, called the tunnel of Kerapamia.

Locating appropriate organic material in the city proved difficult, we eventually collected chusque bamboo on the road to Choachi. The bamboo has become voracious and invasive and with efforts to stem its growth, it felt the right choice. As with all our projects the exhibition was also a place for meeting, and the women had a point of sale.

Curator Liliana Sanguino
Realisation: The indigenous comunity from the Emberá- Chami- Resguardo Karmata Rua
Roux Panchi, Marcela Panchi and Jaima Yagari