Unfinished histories
is an artistic research project
by Alexander Glandien, who investigates postcolonial structures in Latin-America.
The artist retravels the exact route through South and Central America that the explorer and botanist Alexander von Humboldt took
200 years before.

Chimboraza
collage | 40 x 30 cm

Chimborazo in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

The expedition of Alexander von Humboldt to South America (1799 – 1804) is considered to be one of the most significant research expeditions of modern times, showing its traces not only in current debates on the colonial heritage of Europe, but also in a diverse debate about Humboldt‘s person in Latin America itself. Following the ideas of the Enlightenment, Humboldt‘s journey created an unknown awareness for America and he tried to create a differentiated and open view on foreign cultures. But Humboldt's adventures of gathering knowledge, surveying and mapping territories, were also used as an instrument of colonial domination.

Alexander von Humboldt Portrait
Alexander von Humboldt Portrait
Alexander von Humboldt Portrait
Alexander von Humboldt Portrait

This inherent ambivalence of scientific expeditions is the starting point for my long-term research project „Unfinished histories“. More than 200 years after Humboldt, I started retraveling South America on the exact same route, visited the same places and reworked, corrected and amended his observations from a contemporary perspective. This project on Europe‘s colonial heritage is accompanied by various dialogues and collaborations with Latin American artists and scientists, searching for a joint analysis of postcolonial perspectives.

However, enlightenment and progress can not be thought of without oppression, colonialism, racism and environmental destruction.

researching at library Bogota

Research at Luis Ángel Arango library in Bogota

Unfinished histories
is an artistic research project
by Alexander Glandien, who investigates postcolonial structures in Latin-America.
The artist retravels the exact route through South and Central America that the explorer and botanist Alexander von Humboldt took
200 years before.

Chimborazo in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Chimboraza
collage | 40 x 30 cm

The expedition of Alexander von Humboldt to South America (1799 – 1804) is considered to be one of the most significant research expeditions of modern times, showing its traces not only in current debates on the colonial heritage of Europe, but also in a diverse debate about Humboldt‘s person in Latin America itself. Following the ideas of the Enlightenment, Humboldt‘s journey created an unknown awareness for America and he tried to create a differentiated and open view on foreign cultures. But Humboldt's adventures of gathering knowledge, surveying and mapping territories, were also used as an instrument of colonial domination.

Alexander von Humboldt Portrait
Alexander von Humboldt Portrait
Alexander von Humboldt Portrait
Alexander von Humboldt Portrait

However, enlightenment and progress can not be thought of without oppression, colonialism, racism and environmental destruction.

This inherent ambivalence of scientific expeditions is the starting point for my long-term research project „Unfinished histories“. More than 200 years after Humboldt, I started retraveling South America on the exact same route, visited the same places and reworked, corrected and amended his observations from a contemporary perspective. This project on Europe‘s colonial heritage is accompanied by various dialogues and collaborations with Latin American artists and scientists, searching for a joint analysis of postcolonial perspectives.

researching at library Bogota

Research at Luis Ángel Arango library in Bogota

Cayambe in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Volcán Cayambe | collage | 60 x  30 cm

Besides texts, objects and measurements Alexander von Humboldt featured maps and graphic images as a principal mode of describing and portraying Latin America. He created a famous series of color plates depicting natural and cultural micro-environments. These images are science and art at the same time - hybrids that combine visual layers with collected data and complex information about very specific locations, about the landscape, the indigenous inhabitants and their culture. The locations shown served as a starting point for a series of collages, combining the graphics from Humboldt’s book “Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas” with my photographs from the exact same places in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

Salto del Tequendama in Colombia by Alexander Glandien

Salto del Tequendama | collage | 27 x 20 cm

Mud vulcanos of Turbaco in Colombia by Alexander Glandien
Ruins of Ingapirca in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Ruins of Ingapirca | collage | 30 x 21 cm

Mud volcanoes of Turbaco | collage | 30 x 21 cm

Cascada del Rio Vinagre in Colombia by Alexander Glandien
Passage of Quindio in Colombia by Alexander Glandien

Rio Vinagre | collage | 26 x 19 cm

Quindío Passage | collage | 48 x 28 cm

Cayambe in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Volcán Cayambe | collage | 60 x  30 cm

Besides texts, objects and measurements Alexander von Humboldt featured maps and graphic images as a principal mode of describing and portraying Latin America. He created a famous series of color plates depicting natural and cultural micro-environments. These images are science and art at the same time - hybrids that combine visual layers with collected data and complex information about very specific locations, about the landscape, the indigenous inhabitants and their culture. The locations shown served as a starting point for a series of collages, combining the graphics from Humboldt’s book “Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas” with my photographs from the exact same places in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

Salto del Tequendama in Colombia by Alexander Glandien

Salto del Tequendama | collage | 27 x 20 cm

Mud vulcanos of Turbaco in Colombia by Alexander Glandien

Mud volcanoes of Turbaco | collage | 30 x 21 cm

Ruins of Ingapirca in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Ruins of Ingapirca | collage | 30 x 21 cm

Cascada del Rio Vinagre in Colombia by Alexander Glandien

Rio Vinagre | collage | 26 x 19 cm

Passage of Quindio in Colombia by Alexander Glandien

Quindío Passage | collage | 48 x 28 cm

The Institute - animated documentary by Alexander Glandien
The Institute - animated documentary by Alexander Glandien

The
Institute

There are lots of narratives about the new El Dorado which is hiding somewhere in the forest.

»We discover Colombia just after the signature of peace. And still, we are trapped in the discussion that biodiversity is the new oil.«

Brigitte Baptiste, former head of "Instituto Humboldt” Bogota

The Institute
excerpt
Full-HD | DCP | Stereo | 13 min
English subtitles

The Institute is an animated documentary about the importance of biodiversity for the cultural identity and the economic independence of Latin America. It is based on a conversation with the leading biodiversity expert and transgender activist Brigitte Baptiste. She is the former head of "Instituto Humboldt” in Bogota, the world's first institute for biodiversity research. The film shows the connections between the historical research expeditions of Humboldt, Mutis and Caldas in South America with genetic research and contemporary biology in today’s Colombia. The long-awaited peace in the country has not only opened up unreachable territories for research, but also sparked a debate about how to deal with the country's biological heritage.

The
Institute

The Institute - animated documentary by Alexander Glandien

There are lots of narratives about the new El Dorado which is hiding somewhere in the forest.

The Institute - animated documentary by Alexander Glandien

»We discover Colombia just after the signature of peace. And still, we are trapped in the discussion that biodiversity is the new oil.«

Brigitte Baptiste, former head of "Instituto Humboldt” Bogota

The Institute
excerpt
Full-HD | DCP | Stereo | 13 min
English subtitles

The Institute is an animated documentary about the importance of biodiversity for the cultural identity and the economic independence of Latin America. It is based on a conversation with the leading biodiversity expert and transgender activist Brigitte Baptiste. She is the former head of "Instituto Humboldt” in Bogota, the world's first institute for biodiversity research. The film shows the connections between the historical research expeditions of Humboldt, Mutis and Caldas in South America with genetic research and contemporary biology in today’s Colombia. The long-awaited peace in the country has not only opened up unreachable territories for research, but also sparked a debate about how to deal with the country's biological heritage.

Rider - Mompox - Colombia

Mompox

Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia Map
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia

Standstill
excerpt
video | full-HD | 8 min

Mompox is a small town on the banks of Magdalena river. It was founded by Spanish settlers in 1540 and it was here, in 1810 where Colombia’s independence from Spain was declared. At this time, it was a wealthy key trading town linking Colombia’s coast with Bogota and the Andean region, but soon after that, erosion and sedimentation changed the course of the Magdalena River. The commercial and social life of the colonial town diminished, and its inhabitants emigrated to other regions. The crumbling town became an island enclosed by river arms and almost frozen in time. The video Standstill portrays this special place through focused observation of one object – an omnipresent rocking chair in colonial design.

Rider - Mompox - Colombia

Mompox

Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia Map
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia
Mompox - Colombia

Mompox is a small town on the banks of Magdalena river. It was founded by Spanish settlers in 1540 and it was here, in 1810 where Colombia’s independence from Spain was declared. At this time, it was a wealthy key trading town linking Colombia’s coast with Bogota and the Andean region, but soon after that, erosion and sedimentation changed the course of the Magdalena River. The commercial and social life of the colonial town diminished, and its inhabitants emigrated to other regions. The crumbling town became an island enclosed by river arms and almost frozen in time. The video Standstill portrays this special place through focused observation of one object – an omnipresent rocking chair in colonial design.

Standstill
excerpt
video | full-HD | 8 min

Mural at Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia

Mural at Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia by Óscar González

Plantas
sagradas

Flower

In Popayan I met with Olga Lucia Sanabria-Diago, who gave me an inspiring insight into the field of ethnobotany and the ecological, social and cultural dimensions of the plants in the Andean area. Several native plants are sacred to the indigenous people, and thereby it is prohibited to collect or even to photograph these plants. In scientifically studying these plantas sagradas other media, like drawings or paintings obtain a significant role.

Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure

Coca leaf chewing figures

Mural at Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia

Mural at Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia by Óscar González

Flower

Plantas
sagradas

In Popayan I met with Olga Lucia Sanabria-Diago, who gave me an inspiring insight into the field of ethnobotany and the ecological, social and cultural dimensions of the plants in the Andean area. Several native plants are sacred to the indigenous people, and thereby it is prohibited to collect or even to photograph these plants. In scientifically studying these plantas sagradas other media, like drawings or paintings obtain a significant role.

Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure
Coco chewing Quechua figure

Coca leaf chewing figures

Ciat seedbank colombia by Alexander Glandien

Wild relatives,
the distant cousins of our well-known food crops, are one of the most important resource available in the fight against climate change, higher temperatures or pest and disease outbreaks, because they can adapt and thrive under these impacts.

CIAT, which stands for Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical, is a research center dedicated to preserve the world’s biodiversity and food safety. It is based in Palmira (Colombia) and preserves the world’s largest and most diverse collection of beans, most of them originating from Latin America. This huge variety of seeds is catalogued, conserved and made available for distribution by CIAT’s large Genebank. This biodiversity repository assists breeders and researchers and also directly provides seeds to farmers. As guardians of agrobiodiversity they work on safekeeping the primary sources.
During my research trip throughout the country I met with Peter Wenzl, who is leading CIAT’s Genetic Resources Program and Genebank Scientist Monica Carvajal showed me around the wonderful campus and patiently explained all the processes. I also learned about the importance of wild relatives as a valuable source for genetic diversity.

Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia by Alexander Glandien

Wild relatives,
the distant cousins of our well-known food crops, are one of the most important resource available in the fight against climate change, higher temperatures or pest and disease outbreaks, because they can adapt and thrive under these impacts.

CIAT, which stands for Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical, is a research center dedicated to preserve the world’s biodiversity and food safety. It is based in Palmira (Colombia) and preserves the world’s largest and most diverse collection of beans, most of them originating from Latin America. This huge variety of seeds is catalogued, conserved and made available for distribution by CIAT’s large Genebank. This biodiversity repository assists breeders and researchers and also directly provides seeds to farmers. As guardians of agrobiodiversity they work on safekeeping the primary sources.
During my research trip throughout the country I met with Peter Wenzl, who is leading CIAT’s Genetic Resources Program and Genebank Scientist Monica Carvajal showed me around the wonderful campus and patiently explained all the processes. I also learned about the importance of wild relatives as a valuable source for genetic diversity.

Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia
Ciat seedbank colombia

This is where the youth of Ecuador holds their rap battles about their everyday life and the future of their country.

Humboldt stage parque El Ejidio | Quito | Ecuador

Monument
video | 4 min

Monument portrays the spontaneity and transience of a rap battle taking place in the Ecuadorian capital Quito. Starting point is the statue of the Alexander von Humboldt in Parque El Ejido, which serves as a stage for freestyle battles every Friday. The improvised text, which is largely shaped by slang, was transcribed and rhythmized for the video and accompanies it as an oversized subtitle. The actors‘ actually fleeting words thus become a monument to Latin American youth culture and take over the existing historical monument.

Humboldt stage parque El Ejidio | Quito | Ecuador

This is where the youth of Ecuador holds their rap battles about their everyday life and the future of their country.

Monument portrays the spontaneity and transience of a rap battle taking place in the Ecuadorian capital Quito. Starting point is the statue of the Alexander von Humboldt in Parque El Ejido, which serves as a stage for freestyle battles every Friday. The improvised text, which is largely shaped by slang, was transcribed and rhythmized for the video and accompanies it as an oversized subtitle. The actors‘ actually fleeting words thus become a monument to Latin American youth culture and take over the existing historical monument.

Monument
video | 4 min

peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien

Fog
Catcher

Fog catcher
atrapanieblas

watercolor drawings
28 x 18 cm

peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien

Almost the entire Pacific coast of Peru is characterized by extreme drought and because many people here don't have access to clean water, they try to produce water from the existing fog with the help of so-called Atrapanieblas (fog catchers). In the mountain regions along the coast and in the hills around Lima, various constructions are used to stretch fine-meshed nets on which the mist condenses, and it is finally collected as water in containers. With the support of the NGO Peruanos sin agua, I visited some of the facilities and with the water extracted from the fog I created a series of watercolor drawings that represent these fog catchers.

I also had the opportunity to interview Abel Cruz Guiterrez, founder of Peruanos sin agua and passionate developer of fog catchers.

Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Abel Cruz Gutierrez Presidente - ONGD PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien

Fog
Catcher

peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien

Fog catcher
atrapanieblas

watercolor drawings
28 x 18 cm

Almost the entire Pacific coast of Peru is characterized by extreme drought and because many people here don't have access to clean water, they try to produce water from the existing fog with the help of so-called Atrapanieblas (fog catchers). In the mountain regions along the coast and in the hills around Lima, various constructions are used to stretch fine-meshed nets on which the mist condenses, and it is finally collected as water in containers. With the support of the NGO Peruanos sin agua, I visited some of the facilities and with the water extracted from the fog I created a series of watercolor drawings that represent these fog catchers.

peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien

I also had the opportunity to interview Abel Cruz Guiterrez, founder of Peruanos sin agua and passionate developer of fog catchers.

Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Abel Cruz Gutierrez Presidente - ONGD PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
Fogcatcher - community - PERUANOS SIN AGUA
peruvian fogcatcher watercolor drawing by alexander glandien

Searching

for Penipe

Bridge near Penipe in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

In June 1802, Alexander von Humboldt crossed the river Chambo in Ecuador, by a rope bridge, called the Bridge of Penipe. Later he described and depicted that bridge in his book “Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas”. More than 200 years later, we tried to revisit that place, but as so often during this trip, instead of finding the bridge we had an interesting conversion with the residents of the village Penipe, based on Humboldt's drawing. Here is a small spanish excerpt.

Bridge of Penipe from Humboldt's “Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas”

Searching

for Penipe

Bridge near Penipe in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Bridge of Penipe from Humboldt's “Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas”

In June 1802, Alexander von Humboldt crossed the river Chambo in Ecuador, by a rope bridge, called the Bridge of Penipe. Later he described and depicted that bridge in his book “Views of the Cordilleras and Monuments of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas”. More than 200 years later, we tried to revisit that place, but as so often during this trip, instead of finding the bridge we had an interesting conversion with the residents of the village Penipe, based on Humboldt's drawing. Here is a small spanish excerpt.

in transit
in transit
in transit
in transit
in transit border
in transit
in transit
in transit
in transit

In
Transit

Humboldt-Glandien-Route Map
foggy chimborazo

climbing Volcan Chimborazo in Ecuador | near the first refuge at an altitude of 4800m

In Transit

excerpt
video | Full-HD | 18 min

So far, I followed Humboldt’s route approx. 6000 km across South America, from the Caribbean coast of Cartagena in Colombia, along the Rio Magdalena, via Bogota and Cali, across the Andes to the Ecuadorian capital Quito. From there I continued south along "The Avenue of the Volcanoes", crossed the border to Peru at La Balsa, where I traveled on via Jaen and then to the coast to Trujillo. From there I followed the coast to the Peruvian capital Lima. The entire route was shaped by a variety of means of transport, buses, taxis, collectivos, boats, moto taxis and many paths on foot. And music was a constant companion. This video is dedicated to the many drivers and their individual sounds.

foggy chimborazo

climbing Volcan Chimborazo in Ecuador | near the first refuge at an altitude of 4800m

Humboldt-Glandien-Route Map
in transit
in transit
in transit
in transit
in transit border
in transit
in transit
in transit
in transit

In
Transit

So far, I followed Humboldt’s route approx. 6000 km across South America, from the Caribbean coast of Cartagena in Colombia, along the Rio Magdalena, via Bogota and Cali, across the Andes to the Ecuadorian capital Quito. From there I continued south along "The Avenue of the Volcanoes", crossed the border to Peru at La Balsa, where I traveled on via Jaen and then to the coast to Trujillo. From there I followed the coast to the Peruvian capital Lima. The entire route was shaped by a variety of means of transport, buses, taxis, collectivos, boats, moto taxis and many paths on foot. And music was a constant companion. This video is dedicated to the many drivers and their individual sounds.

In Transit

excerpt
video | Full-HD | 18 min

Botanical
Identity

Seed wallpaper by Alexander Glandien

Abrus precatorius | Wallpaper design of toxic precatory beans that are often used for traditional jewelry

Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Banana collection
FLORA ars+natura Bogota
FLORA ars+natura Bogota
maiz collection
seed grid

Garden view of art space FLORA ars+natura in Bogota, that specializes in the relationship between art and nature. I had the pleasure to meet with José Roca there, who is one of the two founders.

Seed wallpaper designs

Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing
Seed drawing

Botanical
Identity

Seed wallpaper by Alexander Glandien

Abrus precatorius | Wallpaper design of toxic precatory beans that are often used for traditional jewelry

Banana collection
FLORA ars+natura Bogota
FLORA ars+natura Bogota

Garden view of art space FLORA ars+natura in Bogota, that specializes in the relationship between art and nature. I had the pleasure to meet with José Roca there, who is one of the two founders.

maiz collection
seed grid

Seed wallpaper designs

El
Totumo

Searching for El Totumo | video | 4min

Rio Guayaquil in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Rio Guayaquil | collage | 44 x 28 cm

Butterfly

El
Totumo

Searching for El Totumo | video | 4min

Rio Guayaquil in Ecuador by Alexander Glandien

Rio Guayaquil | collage | 44 x 28 cm

Butterfly