Axes of coexistence. Visual dialogues of counter-imagining with embera indigenous people

Abstract

This photographic research explores the evolving role of photography and mediation practices in decolonizing visual narratives about Indigenous communities, focusing on the Embera people of Colombia. Rooted in a decade-long collaboration, the project emphasizes indigenous sovereignty in self-representation and the complexities of mediating these stories across geographies and diasporic contexts. By adopting relational and co-creative methodologies, the work challenges Eurocentric colonial frameworks entrenched in Western photographic traditions and exhibitionary practices. It highlights the importance of unlearning colonial visual frameworks, and fostering intercultural coexistence through alternative curatorial strategies and transmedia storytelling.