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The Wichis - Masters of Wood Crafts
The artists who made these wooden objects belong to some of the last remaining
Indian communities in grassland and mountains of Northern Argentina. The Wichi
Indians who settled in this region, hunted and gathered along the streams
and rivers of the region as their ancestors had been doing for centuries.
But, with the advance of European and criollo (mixed race) cultures and ways
of life, the Argentine natives found it harder and harder to pursue their
traditional ways. Fortunately, a quarter of a century ago, a school of craftsmen
opened and men and women had the opportunity to pass on the secrets of their
fine craftsmanship.
They showed amazing creativity in recreating the natural forms, using just
scraps of materials, like wooden fragments and cow bone. Soon, they were selling
their work at important stores in Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital. And
they began exporting these beautiful objects to Europe and America. Today,
Argentine Native American crafts are considered among the finest produced
by indigenous people throughout the world.
All items are hand crafted in scented local wood, beautifully finished and
polished. Crafters prefer to use chips and scraps, so there is no need to
cut down tress. This means a wise use of forest resources.
Wichi Indians Carve a Future in Argentina
Complete information on Siwok Crafts can be found at http://www.siwok.com
Threatened with the loss of their traditional hunting and gathering way of
life, many Wichi Indian men have left their native Chaco forest in northern
Argentina to look for work in cities. With the devaluation of the peso and
strict economic controls imposed by the International Monetary Fund and the
World Bank, Argentina is in the midst of a severe recession and jobs are difficult
to find.
Octaviano Rojas and two of his friends left the Mision Chaquena on the Bermejo
River in northern Argentina to look for work in Buenos Aires, 1000 miles to
the south. After 3 months, discouraged by police harassment, discrimination,
and homesickness, Octaviano and his friends returned to the Chaco.
There they found work with Siwok Crafts,
run by Alec Deane, which markets beautiful handcarvings made from local woods.
Octaviano can now support his family with income from his carvings, and his
children can learn the Wichi language and culture surrounded by their extended
family. Siwok Crafts provides crucial income for Octaviano and 80 other Wichi
woodcarvers and their families.
The difference between the villages of the carvers and other Wichi villages
is striking. Ninety percent of the homes in the carvers' communities have
electricity; malnutrition and infant mortality rates have plummeted due to
expanded health care facilities; and fathers and sons are staying home to
carve instead of migrating to the cities to look for work.
Fifteen years ago, missionaries from Mision Chaquena, anxious to find work
with dignity for the Wichis, established Siwok
Crafts. Woodcarving, a labor-intensive skill using hand tools, combined
the natural skills of the Wichis with a plentiful supply of basic materials--wood
from dead trees in the forest. Wichi carvers collect branches and trunks of
fallen trees. Woods such as quebracho, a very hard dark wood used for railroad
ties, and the fragrant green palo santo, or holy wood, provide the raw material
for carving.
The Wichis' ancestral home is the Gran Chaco, a huge expanse of dry, scrub
forest and sparsely vegetated plains covering much of northern Argentina and
southern Paraguay. With extreme temperatures and very little rain, this "green
desert" is a harsh, inhospitable place, covered with thornbush and quebracho
trees.
Overgrazing by cattle ranchers and cutting trees to clear land for agriculture
has left much Wichi land barren and eroded. The forest, where Wichis hunted
deer and collected honey, is disappearing. The Pilcomayo River, a source of
fresh fish, will soon be dammed in preparation for a massive hydro-electric
project.
Complete information on Siwok Crafts can be found at http://www.siwok.com
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Information on these pages has been retrieved from the following sources:
www.cia.gov
www.presidencia.gov.ar
www.lonelyplanet.com
www.bcra.gov.ar
www.bibnal.edu.ar
www.literatura.org
www.mrecic.gov.ar
www.geographia.com
www.sectur.gov.ar
www.buenosairesherald.com
http://news.bbc.co.uk
http://lanic.utexas.edu
http://travel.state.gov
www.journeylatinamerica.co.uk
www.latin-focus.com
www.argentinas-hotels.com
www.worldatlas.com
www.imf.org
www.weatherhub.com
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