Martín Chambi
Encyclopedia
Martín Chambi Jiménez or Martín Chambi de Coaza, (Puno
, Peru
November 5, 1891 – Cuzco
, September 13, 1973) was a photographer, originally from southern Peru. He was one of the first major indigenous Latin American photographers.
Recognized for the profound historic and ethnic documentary value of his photographs, he was a prolific portrait photographer in the towns and countryside of the Peruvian Andes
. As well as being the leading portrait photographer in Cuzco
, Chambi made many landscape photographs, which he sold mainly in the form of postcard
s, a format he pioneered of in Peru.
In 1979, New York's MOMA
held a Chambi retrospective, which later traveled to various locations and inspired other international expositions of his work.
-speaking peasant family in one of the poorest regions of Peru, at the end of the nineteenth century. When his father went to work in a Carabaya Province
gold mine on a small tributary of the River Inambari, Martin went along.
There he had his first contact with photography, learning the rudiments from the photographer of the Santo Domingo Mine near Coaza (owned by the Inca Mining Company of Bradford, Pa). This chance encounter planted the spark that made him seek to support himself as a professional photographer. With that idea in mind, he headed in 1908 to the city of Arequipa
, where photography was more developed and where there were established photographers who had taken the time to develop individual photographic styles and impeccable technique.
Chambi initially served as an apprentice in the studio of Max T. Vargas, but after nine years set up his own studio in Sicuani in 1917, publishing his first postcards in November of that year. In 1923 he moved to Cuzco and opened a studio there, photographing both society figures and his indigenous compatriots. During his career, Chambi also travelled the Andes extensively, photographing the landscapes, Inca ruins, and local people.
Puno
Puno is a city in southeastern Peru, located on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It is the capital city of the Puno Region and the Puno Province with a population of approximately 100,000. The city was established in 1668 by viceroy Pedro Antonio Fernández de Castro as capital of the province of...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
November 5, 1891 – Cuzco
Cusco
Cusco , often spelled Cuzco , is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cuzco Province. In 2007, the city had a population of 358,935 which was triple the figure of 20 years ago...
, September 13, 1973) was a photographer, originally from southern Peru. He was one of the first major indigenous Latin American photographers.
Recognized for the profound historic and ethnic documentary value of his photographs, he was a prolific portrait photographer in the towns and countryside of the Peruvian Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
. As well as being the leading portrait photographer in Cuzco
Cusco
Cusco , often spelled Cuzco , is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cuzco Province. In 2007, the city had a population of 358,935 which was triple the figure of 20 years ago...
, Chambi made many landscape photographs, which he sold mainly in the form of postcard
Postcard
A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope....
s, a format he pioneered of in Peru.
In 1979, New York's MOMA
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
held a Chambi retrospective, which later traveled to various locations and inspired other international expositions of his work.
Beginnings as a photographer
Martín Chambi was born into a QuechuaQuechua languages
Quechua is a Native South American language family and dialect cluster spoken primarily in the Andes of South America, derived from an original common ancestor language, Proto-Quechua. It is the most widely spoken language family of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, with a total of probably...
-speaking peasant family in one of the poorest regions of Peru, at the end of the nineteenth century. When his father went to work in a Carabaya Province
Carabaya Province
Carabaya Province is a province of the Puno Region in Peru. The capital of the province is the city of Macusani.- Political division :The province measures and is divided into ten districts:- External links :...
gold mine on a small tributary of the River Inambari, Martin went along.
There he had his first contact with photography, learning the rudiments from the photographer of the Santo Domingo Mine near Coaza (owned by the Inca Mining Company of Bradford, Pa). This chance encounter planted the spark that made him seek to support himself as a professional photographer. With that idea in mind, he headed in 1908 to the city of Arequipa
Arequipa
Arequipa is the capital city of the Arequipa Region in southern Peru. With a population of 836,859 it is the second most populous city of the country...
, where photography was more developed and where there were established photographers who had taken the time to develop individual photographic styles and impeccable technique.
Chambi initially served as an apprentice in the studio of Max T. Vargas, but after nine years set up his own studio in Sicuani in 1917, publishing his first postcards in November of that year. In 1923 he moved to Cuzco and opened a studio there, photographing both society figures and his indigenous compatriots. During his career, Chambi also travelled the Andes extensively, photographing the landscapes, Inca ruins, and local people.
Critical response
"It is wrong to focus too much on the testimonial value of his photos. They have that, indeed, but, in equal measure they express the milieu in which he lived and they show (...) that when he got behind a camera, he became a giant, a true inventor, a veritable force of invention, a recreator of life."- - Mario Vargas LlosaMario Vargas LlosaJorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquis of Vargas Llosa is a Peruvian-Spanish writer, politician, journalist, essayist, and Nobel Prize laureate. Vargas Llosa is one of Latin America's most significant novelists and essayists, and one of the leading authors of his generation...
Chronology
- 1891 - Born in Coaza, PunoPunoPuno is a city in southeastern Peru, located on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It is the capital city of the Puno Region and the Puno Province with a population of approximately 100,000. The city was established in 1668 by viceroy Pedro Antonio Fernández de Castro as capital of the province of...
(PeruPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
) to a Quechua-speaking indigenous family. - 1905 - Father dies. Travels to the banks of the Inambari to work in the gold mines, meets photographers working at the Santo Domingo Mine owned by the Inca Mining Co.
- 1908 - Apprentice in the photographic studio of Max T. Vargas, in ArequipaArequipaArequipa is the capital city of the Arequipa Region in southern Peru. With a population of 836,859 it is the second most populous city of the country...
. - 1917 - Opens his first photographic studio in Sicuani, Puno.
- 1920 - Establishes himself in the city of CuscoCuscoCusco , often spelled Cuzco , is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cuzco Province. In 2007, the city had a population of 358,935 which was triple the figure of 20 years ago...
, photographing in the "painterly" style he learned in Arequipa. - 1927 - Beginning of his mature photographic style.
- 1938 - Opens studio gallery
- 1950 - Cusco earthquake. End of the "Cusco School". After this, he gradually ceases to work actively as a photographer.
- 1958 - Exposition in his honor on the occasion of 50 years of his career as a photographer.
- 1964 - Chambi Exposition en MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
("Primera Convención de la Federación Internacional de Arte Fotográfico") - 1973 - Chambi dies in Cusco, in his old studio on Calle Marqués.
- 1976 - Documentary, El arte fotográfico de Martín Chambi, by José Carlos Huayhuaca.
- 1977 - First work in cataloguing and restoring Chambi's photographic archives, financed by the Earthwatch Foundation (Belmont, MassachusettsBelmont, MassachusettsBelmont is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. The population was 24,729 at the 2010 census.- History :Belmont was founded on March 18, 1859 by former citizens of, and land from the bordering towns of Watertown, to the south; Waltham, to the west; and Arlington, then...
) marks the beginning of international recognition of his work. - 1979 - Retrospective exposition at MOMAMomaMoma may refer to:* Moma , an owlet moth genus* Moma Airport, a Russian public airport* Moma District, Nampula, Mozambique* Moma River, a right tributary of the Indigirka River* Google Moma, the Google corporate intranet...
in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. - 1981 - Latin American photography exhibit in ZurichZürichZurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
. - 1986 - BBC Arena film "Martin Chambi and The Heirs of the Incas" distributed on television worldwide.
- 1990 - Exposition dedicated to Chambi at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in MadridMadridMadrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
. Book of his work published to coincide with exhibition.
Publications
- Martín Chambi, Photographs 1920-1950. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1993. ISBN 1-56098-244-6 (originally published in Spain by Lunwerg Editores, 1990
- Martín Chambi and the Heirs of the Incas. A documentary film by Paul YulePaul YulePaul Harris Yule is a photographer and film maker.Born in South Africa his family emigrated to England when he was 8 years old. After studying at Aldenham School and Oxford University he became an acclaimed photojournalist and documentary film maker, founding Berwick Universal Pictures in London in...
and Andy Harries, originally made for the BBC in 1986.