Artistic “ecoversities residency” in C.A.C.A.O./ La Auténtica Chocolateria Oaxaca, Mexico

By: Daniela Brasil & Yuri

Hosted by Edi Garcia, Areli y Ximena, and the members of Cooperativa C.A.C.A.O.
November 2019

we all love CHOCOLATE, don’t we sweetheart? sure, we are aware of the (colonial) paths cacao and chocolate have drawn throughout the world since the encounter between Cortés and Moctezuma. sure, we are aware of the never ending cycles of oppression, dependency and exploitation moved by the global markets. oursweethearts & theirsweatshops.

> C.A.C.A.O, Edi, Areli, Miguelito, they are making a rebellious chocolate to question the system, to resist and to reclaim autonomy. it was an enormous pleasure, an incredible experience to learn with them. AUTONOMIA es una palabra que se ve y se respira en Mexico <pedagogia da autonomia> how much, in which ways can we be autonomous? > lo que ya necesita es florecer. Neruda beautifully said that flourishing is the work of spring. in the tropics I grew up sweating. there are no springs. > what is there to be re/de-appropriated, re/un-told, re/un-written? does your worldmap has the south on top? and/or the pacific in the middle? > in C.A.C.A.O we wondered about the (personal) stories drawn on/in/through the land by our families&cultures, our food, recipes and our tastes. your stories. our stories. which flavours constitute our identities? nascí en America del Sur, mi hijo en Europa, asi como mi papá y su papá. mi abuelo materno era indigena, mi abuela paterna se llamava América. yo soy de aqui y de allá.> in the center of the tables of my childhood there were pots of white sugar. mostly the ants draw a path towards them. my grandmother said if an ant or two would be found in your café com leite, no bother – ants are good for your eyes! I stopped with white sugar in the age of 20, short-sighted > since then I have been struggling to decolonize my eyes and my tongue. my shopping bags. mostly my heart < you? tomorrow we will sit in a Wiener Kaffeehaus. coffee, hot chocolate? with our without sugar, honey?

During the residency we created a collaborative chocolate: mixing flavors, drawings & languages and ended up with 3 happy faces

EDICIÓN ESPECIAL DE CHOCOLATE COLABORATIVO FAMILIAR

Este Chocolate combina el chile mixe, herencia de la cultura AYÜÜK con la semilla tostada de calabaza (KÜRBIS en alemán) – también una comida y una salsa típica en la región de Estíria, Austria; inspirados en la migración y adaptación de la calabaza desde Mesoamerica hacia Europa y la posibilidad de un dialogo entre culturas a traves del cacao. Este chocolate refleja los caminos y las historias que la gente y las semillas dibujan por el mundo.

COLLABORATIVE FAMILY CHOCOLATE – SPECIAL EDITION

This Chocolate combines the MIXE chilli pepper, heritage of the AYÜÜK culture with the toasted pumpkin seed (KÜRBIS in German) – also a typical food/seasoning in the region of Styria, Austria; inspired by the migration and adaptation of the pumpkin from Mesoamerica to Europe and the possibility of a dialogue between cultures through cocoa. This chocolate reflects the paths and stories that people and seeds draw around the world.

what did we bring back home?
> 20 AYÜÜK – KÜRBIS numbered and signed chocolate bars even nbs 1-10, uneven nbs 11-20
> 15 fermented criollo cocoa beans
> 2 zapatistas hand-made dolls, a present from Ximenita personal collection
> 1 Piñero Coffee
> 6 handmade ceramics pieces from Atzompa, as the one from La Autentica
> 2 straw baskets from Mercado de Abastos
> 1 bag of Tascalate Drink powder
> 3 bags of Chocolate Rebeldia drink powder
> 5 bar of Chocolate Rebeldia Cardamomo/Nueve Lunas
> 5 self-made calaverita-chocolates
> 2 cute little silkscreens on Monte Alban, made together with Alan– exchanged with the ecoversities/buen vivir screens brought from Austria
> 2037 fotos (2/3 not really usable)
> 5 audio interviews (5/30 of what i wanted to do)
> 6 Zapatistas Drawings/Postcards from La Jícara
> A5 booklets:

  • La Flor Comunal /mistakenly from Edi, sorry 🙂
  • Mujeres Zapatistas
  • Betty Cariño
  • Aprendizaje en Movimiento> Rutas hacia la liberación de la pedagogía
  • Tramas de aprendizaje convivencial> Propuestas para ejercer la libertad de aprender

> 3 Children Books

  • Tras las huellas de Moctezuma
  • Popol Vuh > A sacred book of the Maya
  • Así era Monte Albán

> uncountable learnings & discoveries still working it all out…

 this residency was possible with the generous support of the ecoversities alliance
& of our family thank you to the City of Graz/ Austria – Department of Culture
for supporting the silkscreen/stamps project

Graz, 15 December 2019

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