Research in the Arts and Visual Studies. An Epistemological Approach from Abya Yala, the Great Territory

Abstract

This article addresses artistic research-creation based on contextual impulses and approaches that are “in-disciplinary” and emancipatory, challenging the modes of production in Abya Yala inherited from Eurocentrism. The term Abya Yala refers to a multi-ethnic territory with a significant number of living Indigenous communities—bearers of vital ancestral knowledge that has long been rendered invisible. The text presents a decolonial, anti-hegemonic, and emancipatory critique of contemporary art that caters to needs imposed by global markets; to this end, it draws upon concepts of syncretism, hybridization, and the ch’ixi, as agents that coalesce the thoughts and actions linked to the region’s profound sensory resonance and cultural potency. This work is an outcome of the research project that gave rise to the seminar “Creative Practices and Community Social Processes” within the Graduate Program in Arts and Design (FAD-UNAM). In this seminar, we explore research-creation and visual studies through a selection of formal, contextual, and conceptual frameworks significant to artistic production within the region’s sociocultural context.