Threads of Hope; Chilean Tapestries
Marjorie Agosin

The loving hands of the mothers of the disappeared in Chile created these colorful wall-hangings. Disappearances arose during a dark time, a period ruled by a military dictatorship that sent almost a million people into exile and made thousands disappear. This military junta overthrew the freely-elected government of Socialist president Salvador Allende and a four man military junta ruled the country from 1973 to 1998.

During these painful times, silence, fear and censorship ruled the country. Yet, a group of women dared to express their sorrow and pain for their missing children during this turbulent time, a time when they were still hoping their children would return. These women of very humble origins decided to defy the military dictatorship by making tapestries with simple stitches. Their tapestries told the narrative of their lives under a regime of fear.

These tapestries are made from scraps of cloth, often the cloth of the missing loved ones. Each tapestry is anonymous and is made by a mother, wife or sister of a missing person. Thanks to the support of the Catholic Church, these women received protection and financial support in order to continue their work making tapestries. These tapestries reached the outside world and revealed the type of life that existed under Chile's tyrannical government.

These women from the shantytowns of Santiago worked tenaciously and courageously as they stitched Chile's tragedy and also their own grief. The tapestries traveled abroad and there were exhibitions for them in prestigious galleries, museums, and churches. Each arpillera revealed life under a dictatorship as well as the hope for Chile's return to democracy.

As in all tyrannical governments, Pincochet's government crumbled and Chile returned to its strong democratic tradition. In 1999, Pinochet was arrested in London for crimes against humanity. After almost a year and a half under house-arrest, he was released and sent back to Chile, to be constantly tried for his human rights violations committed on his native soil.

The work of these women serves as an example on courage and moral strength. These women believed in the power of truth and that art can reveal truth and humanize human experience in dehumanizing times.

These arpilleras were made during the years from 1973 until the early 1990's. They are a powerful legacy to the power of ordinary civilians during troubling times. Above all, they attest to the power of love and courage.