Chairs of Bolivia

The other week I was hanging around the center square of Santa Cruz, and stopped by the culture house (museum).  And here was my favorite exhibit: Tiempo Prestado (Borrowed Time) by Natalie Gonzales and Valentina Bacherer.

The collection is composed of the chairs from security guards found around the city.  This spectrum of chairs is typical for places like the market and houses of lower-income people.  It’s eclectic, and recycling for the necessity and practical economics (as opposed to the environment).   Most of them are functional, and I love their resilience- of the chairs and the people to keep finding a way to fix them.  Enjoy!

This is a classic chair here.  A metal frame
is strung with either string or gimp.  Quite comfy!

This is a permanent installment, called Silla Presidencial,
or Presidential Chair. The grandiosity and lavishness (compare to the
guard’s chair) mocks Evo Morales for his much-rumored corruption.

Raúl Otero Reiche, one of the famous poets and novelists of Bolivia from the early 1900s. 

 Note the stark contrast of his likely European heritage against the indigenous, naked women outside 

in the jungle landscape. The holy cross of “Santa Cruz” hangs prominently above the doorframe.