I want to thank my main supervisor, Alessandro Petti, for always rising to the challenges of this journey and continually encouraging me to aim higher. It has been a real pleasure to have your unwavering support. Similarly, I extend my heartfelt thanks to my second supervisor, Nina Möntmann, for the incredible guidance you have provided throughout these many years.
I want to thank my PhD colleagues, Kajsa Dahlberg, Melanie Gilligan, Emanuel Almborg, and Olivia Plender, for making this journey an unforgettable adventure. And to Research Coordinator, Åsa Andersson, for your support.
I extend my gratitude to the respondents at my progression seminars: Hinrich Sachs, Apolonija Šušteršič, Natasha Marie Llorens, Lisa Rosendahl, Cuauhtémoc Medina, Paulo Tavares, and Marwa Arsanios. Your valuable feedback and insights have been greatly appreciated. I would also like to thank Unni Gjertsen for your important contributions in Peru during the early stages of this journey.
To all the collaborators and participants involved in this PhD: without you, none of this would have been possible. Thank you for trusting me, for your critical insights, empathy, and even your anger. These moments will stay with me for life. To the amazing textile experts: Hanna Adenbäck, Martin Ciszuk, Elisabeth Hamfelt, Lena Hammarlund, Jenny Larsson, Ulrika Mars, Maria Nordin, Astri Sorby, Maiko Tanaka, and Sara Thorn. And to the conservator-restorers: Anna Javér and María Ysabel Medina—thank you for your expertise and guidance. To filmmakers Sergio Ayala, Alvaro Sarria, Daniel Thissen, and Giorgos Chloros: your contributions have been integral to this project. A heartfelt thank you to street comedians Victor Astete, Kelvin Cordova, Jorge Santa Cruz, and Carlos Hidalgo for your laughter and creativity. To the scriptwriters: Mayra Bastos Garcia, Erika Lima Mamani, Corina Lozano Tuanama, Fortunata Panihuara Cordova, Catalina Pinedo Valles, and Karla Toscano Requena—thank you for your brilliant words. And to the actors: Monica Albornoz, Pascalle Arias, Lars Bringås, Natalia Fuentes, Sandra Huldt, Nina Jeppsson, Sandra Medina, Wayra Monasterio, Eva Rexed, and Annika Whittenbury—thank you for bringing these stories to life. I also want to extend my gratitude to Christine Dahl Helweg-Larsen and Krizia Zurita Martinez for your important assistance.
A special mention goes to Roger Sjögren for bravely taking on the massive challenge of constructing our scenography single-handedly, and to Nicole Renard, whose internship as a scenography assistant and scenic painter was significantly elevated by her ambition and dedication.
I also want to thank Cecilia Morón Gaultier and your team, for always providing us with warm accommodations in beautiful Puerto Maldonado. And to Ximena Arroyo, director of AAA Theatre, for receiving our project and facilitating such fantastic working spaces at your institution.
A heartfelt thank you to Johan Rödström and the Museum of World Culture for your continuous support. And to Lisa Rosendahl—once again—for your friendship, insightful conversations, and critical feedback.
I am grateful to Sharon Lerner and Natalia Majluf, and to everyone at MALI Museo de Arte de Lima, for your great support.
I also want to extend my appreciation to Cecilia Widenheim and the exceptional team at Tensta Konsthall for joining me in such an extraordinary endeavour, as well as to Eric and Carl-Oscar Sjögren and Ställberg Gruva for their support.
To Sara Arrhenius for your support and mediation, and I am also very grateful to former Peruvian Ambassador to Sweden, José Beraún Araníbar, for your significant collaboration in this PhD. My gratitude extends to Mari Irene Muñiz for your diplomacy and advocacy, and to Minister Counsellor Waldo Ortega Matías for your positive approach to any request I made in relation to my research.
To my dear friends and colleagues Antonio Fernandini and Ricardo Galvez, it has been an absolute pleasure to share this journey with you both.
My deepest gratitude goes to Johanna Mårtensson for contributing to our project with your incredible and unique artistic capacity. Thank you for showing me the endless possibilities that can be navigated within a scenography. It has been such an honour to work alongside you and to witness such an incredible level of respect and responsibility towards your work. I also want to thank Evis Dahlin for all the shared moments and your unbreakable professional and personal honesty throughout the emotional journey our project has become.
A special note of gratitude to my dear friend and colleague Hinrich Sachs, whom I have previously acknowledged, yet who truly deserves further recognition for your unwavering support, the conversations, the travels, and the laughter we’ve shared.
To my unconditional friend, Gabriel Arriarán, thank you for sharing your love for the jungle with me. Puerto Maldonado wouldn’t be the same without your friendship.
To Marina Tillberg, thank you for your support throughout the years, and to Bastian and Aina—thank you both for keeping me smiling and hopeful for a better future.
Finally, to my sister, Dora Lincoln, for helping to navigate the grief during such difficult times. And to my dear father, Oscar Lara Gallegos: thank you for painting such a vivid and beautiful image of the jungle for me since I was a child. Thank you for keeping that dream alive despite all the changes. I like to think that the jungle you always spoke of is still out there, somewhere.
I dedicate this PhD to my mother, Dora. I miss you very much.
Ps: Thank you, Björn, for your generous support—and for quite literally helping carry the weight of this project.
Mining Life 