Anita Paillamil is a
Mapuche master weaver and researcher who is best known for her weaving work for the collaborative art project known as "Encoded Textiles."[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] She was selected as a part of the
Smithsonian Institution's Artist Leadership Initiative and was honored in 2014 by the
World Fair Trade Organization for her contributions to the preservation and research on textile art.[10][11]
Personal life
Paillamil is from
Nueva Imperial.[11][12] She was part of Fundación Chol Chol, a fair trade organization dedicated to the indigenous Mapuche communities.[12] She also serves as the president of the
Asociación Newen Ngürrekafe, an organization dedicated to serving women weavers from the
Bío-Bío and
Araucanía regions.[13]
Career
Work as an Artist
In 2012, Paillamil worked with
Chilean artist Guillermo Bert to create his "Encoded Textiles," which combined traditional mapuche
weaving with
QR Code designs and were featured in multiple exhibits including 'Guillermo Bert: Encoded Textiles' (2012) at the
Pasadena Museum of California Art[1][2][12][14][15][5] and 'New Territories: Laboratories for Design, Craft and Art in Latin America' (2015) at the Museum of Arts and Design (NY). Paillamil's and
Guillermo Bert's, Mapuche Portal #3, from the series Encoded Textiles, was also included as part of the
Renwick Gallery's 50th Anniversary Exhibit, '
This Present Moment: Crafting A Better World'(2022-2023).[16]
In 2021, her work was displayed in the exhibit “Meli Newen – Cuatro Fuerzas,” which was sponsored by
Temuco Catholic University as part of their
COVID-19 pandemic art initiative “Tejido de Fraternidad.”[17]
Work as a researcher
In 2014, she was a participant
Smithsonian InstitutionNational Museum of the American Indian's Artist Leadership Program and traveled to the Smithsonian Institution to research Mapuche photographs, textiles and iconography and then share her research with the Indigenous Association Wallontu Witral cooperative, located near
Temuco, Chile.[3][18][11] During her research, she had also helped reclassify certain items in the Smithsonian Collection.[19] In 2015, Paillamil presented her weaving and represented
Chile at the
World Expo in
Milan.[20]