Creating from natural materials: Huni Kuin material culture

Abstract

This article is part of a research about cooperative design with sustainable materials. The research on the indigenous design is based on a visit to a village of the huni kuin tribe in the Amazon and analyzes it in terms of Design methods and processes, materials and cooperation. The village is in an isolated place, difficult to reach, and many of their traditional practices have been preserved. What can these ancient practices teach us? What principles are present in their production that are similar to academic ideas about sustainable design? And what challenges do they face nowadays in their material production, with the progressive arrival of industrial goods? The article analyses the processes of pottery, house building and basketry, all traditionally done collectively using only materials and tools from the local forest. Keywords: indigenous, material culture, natural materials, handicraft, Brazilian Amazon, conviviality, permaculture, pottery, sustainable design, ethnic design, bioarchitecture, basketry.