Ignacio Ellacuría Art

Comunidad Ignacio Ellacuría, Chalatenango

Ignacio Ellacuría Art is a collective of workshops and artisans that specialize in four areas of crafts: woven crafts, paper crafts, embroidery and woodwork. The collective began in 1992 as an effort to provide artisans with income and allow them and their families to move forward from difficult financial situations. The artisans of this workshop define solidarity and organizing as priorities in their work.

The workshop is named after a Salvadoran Jesuit priest whose work contributed greatly to Liberation Philosophy. Ellacuría was deeply committed to liberating the oppressed and as a result of this ideology, he was murdered by the Salvadoran army in 1989. In this artisan community, Ellacuría is rememembered as an important advocate of social justice and anti-oppression in El Salvador.

The primary goal of this group is to acquire a steady source of income and consistent work. In order to do this they require vast financial assistance which is currently not a resource they have access to. What is perhaps most unique and interesting about this collective is its excellent professionalism. In working together under the umbrella organization, these groups have managed to organize in ways that increase their potential by allying themselves together interdisciplinarily and creating an innovative collective of artisans.