Art, Memory, and Healing: The "Sinergia" Workshop As a Space of Reparation for Victims of Political Violence in Post-Dictatorship Chile

This presentation proposes an ethnographic exploration of the Lanigraphy Workshop "Sinergia," a collective that emerged in 2017 through the initiative of female users and workers of the Health Repair and Care Program (PRAIS). The group, consisting of approximately ten women, has met weekly since 2017 to heal through art, specifically using techniques such as arpillera, lanigraphy, and embroidery. The central premise is that the creative body holds memory, allowing participants to express their experiences and emotions linked to their history of victimization from political violence during Chile's dictatorship.

This talk will focus on analyzing how this artistic space has served as an alternative form of reparations for victims and their families, in a context where state therapies are often insufficient to address the effects of trauma, torture, and political imprisonment. Key concepts like "reparation" and "victimhood" will be examined broadly, encompassing not only physical or psychological healing but also the reconstruction of identity, empowerment, and the creation of community support networks.

The works produced by these women will be empirically analyzed, interpreted as expressions of a shared collective memory advocating for justice, remembrance, and, in some cases, forgiveness. Artistic creation is presented not only as a therapeutic act but as a vehicle for identity reconstruction and personal agency, essential elements in the struggle for symbolic reparation of past wounds.

Finally, the impact of digitalizing these works will be discussed, as a form of preserving and circulating Sinergia’s art, alongside the desire to exhibit at the Museum of Memory and Human Rights, a symbolic milestone for the recognition of their experiences. This reflection aims to contribute to the debate on art as a tool of resistance and healing in contexts of political violence, analyzing its role in managing trauma and reconstructing collective memory.