ABOUT US

 

Machu Picchu, Seen Through the Eyes of Fernando Astete – This is a project born by chance through the meeting of two individuals, Professor Lorenzo Cantoni and Swiss architect and Founding member of the UNESCO Chair “Anthropology of Health” of the University of Genoa, Adine Gavazzi. It turned into a prosperous venture into the world of Machu Picchu, through the eyes of Fernando Astete. 

It started a year ago when Fernando Astete came to Adine with a box and asked for her help in scanning his diapositives one day. With having no idea what Astete had wanted to do with his slides, Adine recognized the potential the slides had. She recalled having told Astete, “we should build something with it”, something that goes beyond the slides just sitting at the ministry of Culture in Peru. Something that allows the photographs and years of content to be used in a fruitful way and to enhance the voices of Machu Picchu and make them everlasting. After all, the pictures were a commemoration of numerous events that had occurred at Machu Picchu throughout the years.

“The collection of slides that make up the historical archive of Fernando Astete is the result of the work of the anthropologist and archaeologist who guided and represented the Machu Picchu public image for over 35 years, dedicating his life to safeguarding the collective memory of a logo symbolic for the archaeological and cultural identity of Peru.” 

With this idea in mind, Adine approached Prof. Lorenzo Cantoni at UNESCO Chair at USI and thus the collaboration between two UNESCO Chairs, (USI in Lugano and UNESCO Chair “Anthropology of Health” of the University of Genoa, Italy) began and has come to life. This includes an archive and WordPress website which is available to the public and we will continue to bring you stories from Machu Picchu, through the pictures of Fernando Astete. Gratitude goes to everyone involved including Fernando Astete and Adine, Professors at USI, Lorenzo Cantoni and Anna Picco Schwendener, as well as the interns and students at USI UNESCO Chair.

Team behind the project

This project has come to life thanks to the collaboration between institutions and many individuals

 

Interview with the Project Founders and Managers

Learn more from the ideators of the project themselves! Lorenzo Cantoni, Adine Gavazzi and Anna Picco-Schwendener sit down and have an open talk about the very beginning, development and launching of this initiative, while touching on the topics of sustainable tourism and World Heritage