Unko provides opportunities for regional artists to promote their commercial incorporation within AAP airports.
As part of its strategy to convert the airports of Arequipa, Ayacucho, Juliaca, Puerto Maldonado and Tacna into platforms that contribute to the development of economic activities in the southern regions, Aeropuertos Andinos del Perú (AAP) carries out an initiative that offers a first-class exhibition space to local artists to present their local art at fairs held inside the terminals and that promotes the incorporation of these artists into the commercial offer of the airports.
"Unko", a Quechua word, represented in the Inca empire a tunic of very fine fabric that connoted prestige, which is why AAP has adopted that name, to identify, make visible and promote the development of brands of enterprising artists at the regional level. Unko has carried out traveling fairs in Ayacucho and Juliaca, and plans to reach other southern regions where AAP airports are located, so that tourists who transit through the south can appreciate and acquire pieces of great quality and cultural and historical value.
At the end of each edition of Unko, the artisans who stood out are identified and given the opportunity to be part of the commercial mix of shops at the airport. With this, its formalization is encouraged through continuous advice in the process of incorporation as AAP business partners.
Currently, 44% of the commercial offer of airports managed by AAP are occupied by local artists who stood out at the fair and by cultural entrepreneurs. Arturo Ramos Vallejo, an altarpiece artist from Ayacucho who has participated in this exhibition since 2015, is a prominent representative of this initiative. In 2019, AAP proposed him to join the commercial offer within the Alfredo Mendívil Duarte National Airport in Ayacucho, which meant an exponential growth so that his talent could be recognized by local and foreign tourists.
"Unko offered me an exhibition window that allowed me to grow and consolidate my art into a brand: ‘Arturo Ramos Retablos’. In addition, I have been able to grow due to the great reception of my products by national and international tourists, currently, I have four commercial stands at the airports of Ayacucho, Arequipa, Juliaca and Puerto Maldonado," said the artist from Ayacucho.
In turn, Arturo has created a source of work for other artisans in his region, as he has ceramic and fabric suppliers to whom he also offers the opportunity to exhibit their work in his shops.
