Women from Huara Revive Local Pampa Tradition of Making Wreaths from Tin Flowers

News

11-07-2022

Women from Huara Revive Local Pampa Tradition of Making Wreaths from Tin Flowers

This workshop was held through the Puzzle association in Pozo Almonte to revive the local Pampa tradition of making tin flowers. This is a participative experience that places value on Pampa funeral art, transmitting this art form to younger generations.

Born in the nitrate era, this Pampa tradition from northern Chile continues to this day, honoring the dead by making wreaths of tin flowers. SQM places value on this colorful art form through a new edition of the “Floristas de la Pampa” workshop held in Huara.

Through this initiative, workshop participants made each piece from recycled material, where concepts of sustainability combine with a revival of heritage through this local tradition.

The wreaths made were used to decorate the vehicle that led the patron day procession of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, confirmed Laura Vera, secretary of the Reconstruction Committee of the Santísimo Redentor Parish in Huara and workshop participant, who added, “We have held workshops that unite us around traditions such as these tin flowers, which represent an ornamental, decorative, popular art form. They are beautiful and they are easy, fun and relaxing to make.”

Ruth Vilca, social leader for the Municipality of Huara, also participated in the workshop and had a similar opinion. “The making of tin flowers is an activity that in the past was only used for decorating cemeteries, but today it is also used in other activities such as decorating the float used in this procession.”

This initiative’s positioning in the Tarapacá Region is important, according to Yasna Araya, SQM’s Community Relations Assistant, who explains that “this workshop is the first of several that will be held in the Pampa, including in communities such as La Tirana, La Huaica, Quillagua and Pisagua. Our aim is to contribute to the revival of local traditions, promoting an active role in women’s participation in local development, while generating collaborative networks between women in neighboring towns.”

This initiative was led by four monitors from Pozo Almonte and is aligned with SQM’s Sustainability Plan, which aims to strengthen the creation of shared social value between SQM and the communities with which it engages in northern Chile.