Dr. Alejandra Osorio Tarazona

I am a historian specializing in science and technology, with a particular focus on Latin American history. I have worked as a postdoctoral scholar at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, and as a doctoral fellow in the project “A Global History of Technology,” Technische Universität Darmstadt.

Portrait of a woman with long hair and glasses, wearing black, posed against a bright yellow background.

Photo: Sabine Mittermeier

  • Indigenismo Reviewed:
    A History of Its Practical Application and Impact in Peru

    My project examines the interdisciplinary, applied, and instrumental nature of “Indigenismo” in Peru. This artistic and intellectual movement, which emerged in the early twentieth century, focused on the study and representation of Indigenous peoples and cultures, while also advocating for the inclusion of Indigenous people in nation-building efforts. I explore the movement’s present-day impact in educational and cultural institutions and its influence on research methodologies and academic debates. I am also interested in criticisms of Indigenismo for its idealized portrayal of Indigenous people, and the new theoretical frameworks and political demands that have challenged the movement’s legacy.

  • ORCiD: 0000-0001-9697-1570

    2022. “Why Chuño Matters: Rethinking the History of Technology in Latin America.” Technology and Culture 63, no. 3: 808–29.

    2021. With David Drengk and Animesh Chatterjee. “Rethinking Global History of Technology from Alternative Archives.” TG Technikgeschichte 88, no. 2: 202–6.

  • 2025. “On Her Way to Cook: Women, Technology, and Cooking Knowledge in Peruvian History” (presentation). Department on Knowledge Systems and Collective Life Colloquium, Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, March 6.

    2024. Presentation at the workshop “Unknowing Environmental Crisis,” Department on Knowledge Systems and Collective Life, Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, December 9–10.

    2024. “Discovering the Obvious: Indigenous Peruvian Farmers and the Reassessing of Native Potatoes” (presentation). History of Science Society (HSS) Annual Meeting, Mérida, Mexico, November 7–10.

    2024. Presentation at the workshop “Abundance and Loss: Historical Perspectives on Diversity and Nature,” Department on Knowledge Systems and Collective Life, Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, June 6–8.

    2023. “Modernity’s Errors and the Turn of Ordinary People’s Knowledge” (presentation). Annual Meeting of the Society for History of Technology (SHOT), Los Angeles, October 26–29.

  • alejandra.osorio[at]hu-berlin.de
    phone: +49 (0) 30 2093 65863