INTERVIEW N. 2
At home with
MAGALI DEL SOLAR
N. 2
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Pachacamac / Photographer
Magali del Solar is a photographer turned green-thumb and India pilgrimer. During the pandemic Magali found solace in her childhood happy place — Pachacamac, some 30 km south of Lima and site of the citadel of Pre-Incan ruins dating back to 200 BC. Magali shares with us plans for her healing center “Shanti” that will open to the public in March 2023.​
This is a beautiful greenhouse.
Yes, I wanted to start here at the greenhouse because this is where it all begins for me … with this door. I lived in my grandparents' house and when we sold the house I told the person who bought it "please, before demolishing the house, give me that door."
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Then years went by and suddenly a man calls me and says: "I'm calling on behalf of Mr. Salvador, please give me your address to send you the door.” That was a few weeks before the pandemic.
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I've passed through that door a thousand times. When I received it I didn’t know what to do with it. Then when the lockdown began I started to make my little greenhouse. And if you look around here, everything is recycled. Most of the furniture is from flea markets, or tossed out. Like this a table, it’s made from a door, or that is my mother’s old chest of drawers [now a base for a sink.]
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So this place really is the fruit of the pandemic…
Yes and this little door saved me. And do you know the name of the man who bought my grandparents’ house? Salvador [Saviour.] Salvador bought the house where I was born and years later he sent me the door.
The door to your childhood.
Yes, and I realized I have to do something with this door!
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So the greenhouse was the first thing you built here with that door.
Yes, and this little garden. I have my little herbs, I have grapes, I have mangoes, avocados...
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What beautiful columns (referring to an outdoor lounge area.)
I toned them down a bit because they were Corinthian in style, a bit rococo. Oh and this gate was from the panopticon of Lima -- the prison, the Lima penitentiary below the Sheraton hotel built during the government of Ramon Castilla 100 years ago.
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And when did you start collecting?
I'm just a receiver -- sometimes people don't know what to do with things and I like to give new life to other people's "garbage".
And then how did this greenhouse grow into Shanti?
Shanti is for anyone who wants to come and reconnect with nature; go back to basics and value what we have. When I moved here I realized I didn't need much and that I was happy with what I had. Shanti is a project that I have been working on for a long time, Patricia is helping me [Patricia Exebio]. All the therapies will be here in the dome. The dome is special for healing through sound.
“All therapies?” What type of therapies will Shanti offer?
Yes, various therapies such as radical forgiveness, or breath healing... Shanti will provide a space to be able to do therapy, workshops. There are people who cannot go to Cusco, Puno or the jungle for several days. So Shanti will offer a little getaway for a day to reconnect with nature but without having to travel far.
Speaking of traveling afar, you take yearly trips to India…
Yes, my trips to India totally feed me. They are so stimulating and invigorating; I come back with a thousand ideas of everything…
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And when was the first time you went to India?
In 2017.
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And was that because of yoga or how did you get there?
No, I went as a tourist. We do yoga but I really love the culture, I love the food, the people. It's totally another culture, it breaks your brain.
Do you know what I really long for? When someone comes, they feel that they are traveling for a while, that they are in another place, that they are at peace, that they are calm.
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I think you've already achieved that...
And how did you learn about plants?
During the pandemic I took an online course in Spain and Argentina.
How long ago did you start planting?
Everything that is big trees, for example the avocado, the pecans were already here... For example, the stones were given to me... There are tangerines, mangoes, the floripondio... I give everything a new life...
And what do flowers mean to you?
Offerings. In India, despite the poverty that exists, people get up at 5 in the morning and go to the market to buy flowers and give them as an offering to their gods. You put some little flowers in front of it, it can be incense, whatever comes to your mind…
And speaking of offerings… speaking of gods and cultures, is there something special about the proximity to Pachacamac for you?
There are two things that mean a lot to me, firstly that my parents lived here and I feel them present when I am here. In a positive way, not with sadness but with great joy.
And the other thing is that in Pachacamac there are thousands of rituals, iconography, archaeological remains, it is a super special place, I grew up here.
And who designed the house for you?
Vhal del Solar, my nephew — he did everything that is architecture. And he really incorporated the landscape. For instance, to make the house green, he considered the sunset, how many hours of sun hit that spot… every little thing has a theory behind it.
And the Dome?
Christian Marthaler. He is a Swiss who lives in Mancora
And the landscaping?
I did the landscaping, I went crazy with the plants…
Is nature healing for you?
If we took care of nature again, everything would be amazing… This is my oasis, this is where I can reconnect. Yes, it is healing for me. It is my “Salvador.”
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Post Script
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What are your favorite sites?
Chacras, La Gloria, Torcuato, Mama Qilla…
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What are your favorite places in Lima?
Caleta Dolsa, Alanya, Mo … laughs. As you can see I like breakfast!
