Nilda Callanaupa Alvarez is a native of Chinchero, the Peruvian mountain village immortalized in The Motorcycle Diaries. She was identified by anthropologists at an early age as having an unusual capacity for understanding and recreating historic weaving technique, and was invited to demonstrate at the Smithsonian Institution even before she learned English. She lives in Cusco with her husband and two sons.
Christine Franquemont is an anthropologist with long experience living and working in the Andes studying textiles and essential native plants. She was twice a Fulbright Scholar in Peru, a Visiting Scientist in Japan, and a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow. She is co-chair of Andean Textile Arts, a North American support organization for the Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco.