Yankatu & Brazilian Craftsmanship
Xingu Indigenous Territory – MT – Brazil
Brazil's vast territory encompasses a variety of different ecosystems, including the Amazon rainforest which is recognised for having the greatest biological and socio-cultural diversity in the world. Unfortunately, this natural and socio-cultural heritage is constantly threatened by the livestock and agricultural industries, logging, mining, oil and gas extraction and large-scale deforestation. Since President Bolsonaro assumed office in January 2019, his government's agenda has been clearly geared towards dismantling laws and environmental protection agencies under the guise of following an outdated economic model in which indigenous peoples' protected lands and conservation areas are opened for extraction for economic development. Last year alone, over 1 million hectares of forest were burned and this destruction is far from being over.
According to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), there are approximately 900,000 Indian people in Brazil who fall into 305 ethnic groups and speak at least 274 languages. This data is an example of how Brazil’s socio-cultural range is one of the most diverse on the planet. The government’s neglect of Brazil’s ecosystems and their concealment of the disastrous impact that reforestation is causing the planet puts biodiversity at risk of extinction. It also threatens the lives of indigenous peoples who depend on the forest for survival. Due to these negative statistics and the dire consequences they hold, we at Plural Magazine have decided to take a stand against the issue and support positive initiatives that value traditional indigenous knowledge to promote a more sustainable socio-economic system for this population.
YANKATU
Following the belief of the Kamayurá people, an indigenous tribe located in the Xingu region of the Amazon, the word yankatu means the third soul - our essence. Brazilian designer and researcher Maria Fernanda Paes de Barros was so inspired by this word and its concept that in 2014 she founded a design studio named Yankatu. The studio’s goal is to contribute to the recognition, appreciation and development of Brazilian artisans.
Maria Fernanda travels around Brazil to discover and promote traditional craftsmanship and techniques. She fights for fair commercial relationships based on a respect for human beings, culture and the environment in an attempt to provide autonomy and socio-economic development for the artisans, who are mostly women.
Craftswomen of riverside community of Urucureá, Pará, Brazil.
“With each trip I take, I become humbler, I perceive the differences from new angles, I learn to look again and really see what’s there, I understand meanings through the other’s place. Life without judgment is free, it is light. There aren’t just different languages and colors, there are stories, customs, experiences, pains and joys, engraved on the bones, written on the skin, running through the blood. It is necessary to strip the soul of prejudices, to receive all the stimuli, to deconstruct in order to be able to reconstruct with new meaning, adding before and after, mine and the other.”
Xingu Indigenous Territory – MT – Brazil
Xingu Collection
During most of the projects that she develops, Maria Fernanda Paes de Barros immerses herself within the artisan's community so she can absorb the profound realities of the places that she passes through. She learns ancient techniques directly from the craftsmen and translates them into her contemporary design whilst maintaining the essence of the artisans’ original work.
Unable to return to Kaupüna village due to Covid-19 restrictions, the unusual circumstances left the designer and founder of Yankatu to create the Xingu Collection using unorthodox methods. The collection was created during virtual meetings between Maria Fernanda and the Mehinako Ethnic Group, located in Kaupüna Village in the Upper Xingu region, south of the Amazon Forest. Inspired by the everyday objects from the indigenous community, Maria Fernanda developed the pieces of the Xingu collection with the help of artist and community representative, Stive Mehinako.
“This addition must be done carefully so that identities are not lost or merged. The sum should not subtract anyone. I know it seems strange to talk like this, but if we stop to think, how many times, when adding up, do we see only the total and forget the parts? Here comes Yankatu’s mission, to present tradition through a new perspective, highlighting what we have most beautiful and genuine with balance, respect and admiration”
Inspired by the ceramic bowls typically used to prepare beijus, a traditional food made with cassava, Maria Fernanda created the Beiju Table. The table is made of Cabreuva wood and is embellished with red bead necklaces, made by Kayanaku Aweti, that are traditionally used in rituals. The Embira bench is another piece made from Cabreuva wood. The curvature of its legs makes direct reference to the construction of traditional indigenous Brazilian houses called Ocas.
The Oca closet evokes the beauty of traditional braid, proposing new and innovative ways of incorporating Mehinako culture and tradition in contemporary furniture by using the matting made by ethnic Mehinako women. The matting is made from stalks of the buriti tree. It uses naturally-dyed treads which respect the Xingu palette.
Preparation of beijú, traditional food made from manioc, in a piece of pottery made by another ethnic group, achieved through the traditional exchange system known as "moitará".
Beiju Table, 2020
Beiju Table, 2020
“This braid evokes the strength and resilience of these people and the beauty of their culture”
Embira bench, 2020
Embira bench, 2020
Oca Closet, 2020
Oca Closets, 2020
The exchange of knowledge resulting from direct collaboration with the artisans is of great value to Maria Fernanda, who always seeks a way to help the community involved in her projects. In addition to paying the artisans fair wages, she will be raising funds to buy a motorboat to help the village become autonomous in the extraction of buriti, used by both the women in their art and the men to cover Oca structures.
Located on the banks of Arapiuns River, west of Amazon Rainforest, the region has in handicrafts made with tucumã straw and natural dyes an important source income.
Alma-Raiz (Soul-Root collection, in a literal translation)
Maria Fernanda Paes de Barros created the pieces of the Alma-raiz collection in collaboration with artisans from the riverside community of Urucureá, Pará in Brazil. Located on the banks of the Arapiuns River, west of the Amazon rainforest, the region has made the production of handcrafted goods using straw and natural dyes from tucumã (Astrocaryum aculeatum) an essential source of livelihood. The majority of the artisans in this region are women who revived the old indigenous craft that spanned generations and today flows gracefully through the hands of Urucureá artisans.
The collection of tucumã straw, the cleaning of the thorns, the drying and the weaving of the leaves are carried out with meticulous care. The women sit in a circle and tell stories whilst working together. They create vibrantly colourful and unique baskets with geometric designs of their own style. Maria Fernanda met with the craftswomen several times in 2018 and 2019, got to know each of the artisans and learned about the qualities of the natural material. The Alma-Raiz collection features chairs, side tables and stools. Maria Fernanda is not only renowned worldwide for her work in furniture design but because through direct collaborations with craftsmen, she enables artisans to achieve independence and autonomy with stable and fairly remunerated work.
Located on the banks of Arapiuns River, west of Amazon Rainforest, the region has in handicrafts made with tucumã straw and natural dyes an important source income.
Cocar Chair, 2019
Cocar Chair Plain, 2019
Palafitas Ciranda Side Table M, 2019
Yankatu participates in important global exhibitions to showcase furniture and art pieces and promote Brazilian handicraft. This year Yankatu exhibited at the New York Design Week 2020 and the Social Entrepreneurship - Local Identity and Knowledge 2020 exhibition in Geneva.
Watching the video get to know the creation process of Maria Fernanda Paes de Barros, Yankatu, together with the Brazilian artisans.
