A walk through representations of Paraguayan art

Returning home: A walk through representations of Paraguayan art

On Mariscal López Street is the Integration House of CAF, the development bank of Latin America and the Caribbean. Since October, it has housed a collection of pieces that represent Paraguayan art in its different facets.

For those of us who do not travel on these dates, these months can be very slow. But cities without traffic and the general calm of the month known as “the Monday of the year” can be the perfect seasoning for appreciating art. Today, we bring you a tour of an exhibition that invites you to immerse yourself in a captivating artistic universe, which provides a palette of native colors and shapes that awaken the senses. In this oasis of creativity, each piece illuminates the current tranquil landscape and offers a unique and enriching experience.

The absence of hectic daily routines allows you to fully enjoy every detail and appreciate the meticulous work of the artists. Thus, although January may be considered a slow month for many, this exhibition invites us to discover the vitality of art, to turn the visit into an introspective journey towards the essence of national creativity.
Paraguay, direct to the Arab Emirates
In 2020, Coming Home: The Art and Culture of Paraguay was presented at the Dubai Expo. This is a cut of our cultural wealth that included both indigenous and popular art as well as more urban and contemporary expressions. The multimedia exhibition also integrated performances of music, dance and gastronomy. Today, we can enjoy it at the Integration House of CAF, development bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, located on Mariscal López Avenue.

The curation of the exhibition was in the hands of a multidisciplinary team from various institutions and was a collaborative process that took several months of preparation. The pieces were made by nearly 100 artisans, craftsmen and artists, who with their work created the amalgam that became an experience. Different teachers from all over Paraguay collaborated with the Paraguayan Institute of Crafts to create a representative sample of the country's diverse textile productions.

The artistic pieces seek to be a symbol of the power of collaboration between artists and communities. The exhibition is made up of textiles, basketry, ceramics and wood carvings that, together, tell the story of how Paraguay shaped its habits over the years, from original times to the contemporary era.
In addition, the exhibited collection presents works by ambassadors of Paraguayan culture such as Julia Isídrez, Carlo Spatuzza, Félix Toranzos and Koki Ruiz, who also made their contribution to this collective construction.
“We are happy to receive in our new House in Asunción this set of pieces of great value, which impacted the world from the Gulf for its unique beauty and ability to represent a multicultural and diverse people, rich in traditions, languages and customs, and which reflects the spirit of unity in plurality. Returning home constitutes a bridge between the past, present and a future that travels to development but retains its unique essence,” highlighted Jorge Srur, Southern Regional Manager of CAF, during the opening of the exhibition.
Trying to show a country is no small task. It is always important to highlight that each of the cuts expresses something different, and this, in its essence, seeks to invite reflection on juxtapositions and erase the limits between what is considered popular art and scholarly art.

To visit
The exhibition is available until mid-2024 at the CAF Integration House. It is located in a historic building in the city of Asunción, a recovered property, whose objective is to generate a space that becomes an epicenter of collaboration.