This project aims to document the practical knowledge and the discourses on plant fibers basketry among two distant South American people: the Qom of Argentina’s Gran Chaco and the Aymara of Chile’s Atacama Desert.
We aim to produce audiovisual and written documentation of the entire process of basketry making, in two communities that, despite ecological and historical differences, have long traditions of weaving with plant fibers. Today, they innovate by combining these fibers with recycled urban waste, such as plastics and rubber, in response to environmental degradation. Our aim is to produce a digital archive (with photographs, and audiovisual records) to safeguard the technology of basketry production for future generations.
Through a transdisciplinary approach that brings together archaeology, anthropology, and Indigenous knowledge, we will research and document the techniques and meanings associated to ancient and contemporary basketry practices. Academic researchers and Indigenous will examine museum collections, conduct ethnographic fieldwork, and document the social and cosmological significance of fiberwork. By linking indigenous specialists in artefact production with museum artifacts, we will generate new understandings of technology. This collaborative research recognizes indigenous specialists in artefact production as co-creators of knowledge.
By comparing two geographically distant but resonant regions, we challenge rigid cultural area models in anthropology and archaeology. It challenges disciplinary and regional boundaries, reactivates museum collections through Indigenous perspectives, and supports cultural revitalization, demonstrating how humble plant fibers can weave together worlds and memories. In close partnership with communities, and with indigenous specialists in artefact production, we aim to highlight indigenous heritage and promote intercultural dialogue.
PI: Florencia Tola
Collaborators: Daniela Valenzuela; Valentín Suarez; Francisco Pazzarelli
Research Location: San Carlos and Riacho de Oro, Argentine Chaco, Argentina; Molinos, Lluta Valley and Arica, Chile
Host Institution: Asociación Civil Rumbo Sur
Top Banner Image: Ersilia Diarte (Qom weaver), making a basket in San Carlos Community (Gran Chaco, Argentina). Photo credit: Gabriela Escobar, 2004.