The goal of Archi is to create a digital archive of Peruvian art and preserve a rich cultural and artistic legacy that spans 3,000 years. Find out which museums are participating here.
With the support of the Fundación Telefónica and spearheaded by MALI, Archi aims to create a digital archive of Peruvian art and cultural collections. The museums participating in this initiative include: MALI; National Museum of the Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of Peru; Museo de la Nación (National Museum); National Museum of Peruvian Culture. Private collection are also included in the archive, as well as pieces found in the Government Palace.
The digital archive, first created in 2016, contains more than 20,000 pieces, only 10% of which is currently available to the public. It includes many digitalized works of art that had been photographed by Daniel Gianoni prior to the conception of Archi. Having worked as a photographer for more than 35 years, Gianoni has captured many pieces that unfortunately don’t exist anymore. For example, he photographed the high altar and facade of a church outside of Ayacucho, which he later found out caught on fire.
Highlights from the collection include El contorsionista de Puémape, of the Cupisnique culture (1500-500 a. C.); El vigía, of the Moche culture (300-500 d. C.); La Virgen de la Leche, by Mateo Pérez de Alesio (ca. 1604/1583); and La santusa, by José Sabogal (1928). Pre-hispanic textiles belonging to the National Museum of the Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of Peru have also been digitalized.
By visiting the website users can browse through the collection by categories: Pre-hispanic; Colonial; Republican; Modern; Contemporary. In order to view the high resolution version of a piece, users must email: archi@mali.pe.
Source: El Comercio
Cover photo: Andina.pe
