Re-evaluation of Wichi traditions: Applying Anthropological and Design methods in a participatory project within an Argentinian aboriginal community

When I learned about the aboriginal Wichi people in 2008, I asked myself, how is it possible that I had not known before that such a different culture cohabited Argentina? Then I asked myself: can somebody like me, a designer, address the complex issues related to such a cultural clash by working together with them? Ethnicity differences in Argentina were strongly oppressed, producing historical tensions and much inequality. In the case of the Wichis, it means that around 60% of their population live in rural areas, immersed in poverty. They co-habit with other indigenous groups in the so-called Chaco region, in Northern Argentina. The Wichis historically were nomads; they have their own language, beliefs and traditions. In this study, the first part of the research will focus on understanding the role that handicrafts play for the local people. What does this part of their material culture mean in terms of time, income, reproduction of their culture, and their own identity?
The combination of ethnographical and design methods, such as participant observation, biographical interviews, video documentation, and cultural probes, will be the basis for the data collection. The fieldwork
will consist of several steps. First, there will be deep immersion by the researcher in the community.
Afterwards, a participatory project in the field will be carried out with artisans and design students of the University of Buenos Aires. The Wichi participants will decide the aims and use of the tangible outcomes. Those
could be, for example, new handicraft collections or artworks to be displayed in museums or at the university. I argue this participatory project will contribute to the valorisation of the Wichi handicraft production, and to the reflexion about the role ethnicity plays in Argentina. Moreover, this study will lead to a sustainable project
that can continue beyond the current doctoral dissertation. The scientific outputs of this study may provide concrete suggestions for design approaches and action-oriented ethnographies that aim for social change.