The Quipu of Encounters: Rituals and Assemblies is a series of international events, or ‘knots of action’ developed by artist Cecilia Vicuña as part of the Hyundai Commission. These events connect ancient Andean tradition and contemporary culture, inviting visitors to become active in the prevention of climate catastrophe.
The first event will take the form of a guided ritual led by Vicuña. Members of the public are invited to gather in the Turbine Hall alongside environmental activists, artists, scientists, poets and musicians committed to the defence of vital ecosystems and indigenous communities around the world.
Neither in the mode of ‘activist protest’ nor ‘performance art’, Vicuña understands the quipu as a space in which to experiment with new forms of exchange. The ritual will culminate in an open assembly in the Turbine Hall, where attendees can share their unique views on climate change, bringing awareness to the urgent need to end investment in fossil fuels.
Rejecting systems which individualise and separate, Vicuña encourages participants to reflect on their place in a grander ecology, celebrating their relation to each other and the earth. As she writes ‘the Earth is a brain forest, and the quipu embraces all its interconnections.’
The Quipu of Encounters: Rituals and Assemblies is conceptualized by Cecilia Vicuña, in the context of her exhibitions Hyundai Commission: Cecilia Vicuña at Tate Modern and Cecilia Vicuña: Spin Spin Triangulene at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York.
Ex-termination Living Quipu, A Performance by Cecilia Vicuña, August 30, 2022; in conjunction with Cecilia Vicuña: Spin Spin Triangulene, May 27– September 5, 2022, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. Photograph by Midge Wattles © Cecilia Vicuña and Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York.’
