Salomón, 56, spiritual and community leader of the Palta people, walks at night through the Andean moorland, a walk known as the “power walk.” Salomón walks 46 km over two nights through the mountains as a prayer to the spirit. Chuquiribamba, Ecuador. June 21, 2021.
The hands of Delfina 62, spiritual leader of the Saraguro indigenous community, “Mamá Delfina,” hold a linden branch during an ancestral ceremony. The use of plants is a fundamental part of the spirituality of the Saraguro people. Ecuador. July 9, 2022.
A man enters a temazcal during the Killa Raymi ceremony. The temazcal (mud house) is a steam bath. Its structure symbolically represents the womb. It is a tradition of the peoples of North America and forms part of the cultural and spiritual exchange with the indigenous peoples of South America. Zhuracpamba, Ecuador. December 21, 2019.
Delfina is a spiritual leader of the Saraguro indigenous people. They wear a white hat and a silver brooch on their chest called “Kupo,” which represents the Inca god Inti or Sun God. Saraguro, Ecuador. July 14, 2024
Volcanic stone heated in fire for the Temazcal ritual – steam house – is a small dome where participants purify themselves before and after the dance and purification rituals. Susudel, Ecuador. December 21, 2019
Waico flower, this plant is endemic to the Andean region and is used for its aroma in Andean ceremonies and rituals. Zhuracpamba, Ecuador, June 7, 2024.
During the Andean Pawcar Raymi ceremony, the indigenous community of Zhuracpamba drinks an ancestral beverage called “Aguacolla,” named “San Pedro” by the Spanish during colonization. Shamans use this sacred drink with psychoactive components to guide them in their spiritual quest during the ritual. Zhuracpamba, Ecuador. September 20, 2017.
Mountain of ram skulls on San Cristobal Island. During a spiritual retreat in the Galapagos Islands as part of a process of self-discovery and healing, the path led me to this scene, which answered some of my questions. San Cristobal Island, Ecuador. March 17, 2022.
A spiritual leader of the Saraguro people undergoes spiritual purification. They use aguardiente and plants, with a dagger pointed at the heart to ward off evil spirits. During the celebration of Killa Raymi, an Andean festival of flowering or rebirth. Zhuracpamba, Ecuador. December 21, 2019.
The feet of a dancer during the Inti Raymi ceremony. Participants enter the ceremony barefoot, their feet serving as a channel to connect energetically with the earth when they touch the soles of their feet. Saraguro, Ecuador. June 29, 2022.
The landscape of the southern Andean mountain range Zhuracpamba in her Angel a Shaman of the indigenous people of Saraguro. Susudel, Ecuador December 20, 2019
A Taita shaman from the Saraguro people with a bottle containing burning water. Burning water is frequently used in Andean ceremonies. It is used for drinking and purification in a ceremonial context. Saraguro, Ecuador. June 23, 2023
The Andean figure Haya Huma performs a spiritual purification on a young indigenous woman during the Pawcar Raymi ritual, an Andean festival celebrating the lunar equinox and the beginning of the Andean calendar. Cañar, Ecuador. March 16, 2025.
During the Kolla Raymi celebration with the indigenous community of Saraguro, dancers wear capes, sheep wool ponchos, and white hats. Saraguro, Ecuador, June 29, 2022.
During the Pawcar Raymi ceremony, or fertility festival, the indigenous community of Zhuracpamba dances around the fire all night while drinking aguacolla, an ancient psychoactive drink that is part of their worldview. Zhuracpamba, Ecuador. September 20, 2017.
Indigenous people of the Saraguro tribe during the celebration of Inti Raymi, the festival of the sun god or harvest. Saraguro, Ecuador, June 29, 2022.
Stem of the waico tree, a plant endemic to the Andean region. Its thorns are used in sun dance rituals to pierce the skin. Zhuracpamba, Ecuador, May 15, 2024.
Taita Alex performs a spiritual purification ritual on a young indigenous woman during the Pawcar Raymi ritual, an Andean festival celebrating the lunar equinox and the beginning of the Andean calendar. Cañar, Ecuador. March 16, 2025.
Inspired by the notion of “The Great Mystery” present in the indigenous communities of America, this project proposes a visual reinterpretation of the Andean worldview, where cosmic and physical forces, visible and invisible, coexist and sustain both matter and our perception of reality. These ancestral beliefs are echoed in concepts of quantum physics and astrophysics: microscopic atoms, dark matter, light spectra, and magnetic fields that surround our planet but escape our limited human vision.
The images emerged as a documentation of the spiritual practices of the Andean communities of southern Ecuador and the memory of rituals transmitted from times before colonization. They represent a constant search for answers, a recognition and visual exploration of those invisible forces that surround and sustain us.
