Amazonian Artist Finds Fame Amidst Deforestation Threat

The documentary The Hummingbird Paints Fragrant Songs tells the story of Sara Flores, a septuagenarian Shipibo-Conibo artist from the Peruvian Amazon. In the early 2010s, artists Matteo Norzi and Leonor Caraballo traveled to the Amazon territory to participate in shamanic rituals, during which they encountered the traditional art form of kené.

Norzi continued his involvement with the Shipibo-Conibo people as cofounder of the Shipibo-Conibo Center, a nonprofit that introduces the New York art world to leading kené artists like Flores. Her work has gained international recognition: she collaborated with Dior on a limited edition Lady Dior bag and is currently featured in the Peruvian pavilion at the Venice Biennale.

The documentary follows Flores as she travels to art shows, including those in New York, London, and Paris. She says she loves to travel and enjoys the spoils of her late-in-life fame, which she uses to support her family and Indigenous self-governance organizations.