Huichol Tribe Mexico

Huichol Yarn Painting “Human beings must learn to share

the tears of every living thing,To feel in his heart the pain of the wounded animal, each crushed blade of grass.” – proverb of the Huichol, indigenous people of Mexico.

Shamanic art originated with prayer bowls placed in caves as offerings. Whatever the size, the yarn paintings are personal interpretations of some aspect of Huichol relationship to the gods. In this land of canyons, sparse rainfall, and uncertain crops, these natives depend on their close psychic connections with nature to survive.

http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/3262.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huichol_arthttp://thehuicholcenter.org/huichol-art/

When does a tradition cease to be a tradition? Conversely, at what point in time and under what circumstances does a tradition begin? "Tradition" may be defined as "a statement, belief, or practice transmitted from one generation to another.” In general a "tradition" lasts a long time, but all traditions have to begin some time, somewhere. There are perhaps two ways of looking at native tribal art in general: traditional and generic. Traditionally, patterns and methods are handed down from parents to children but the particular stylistic expression may change over time with the introduction of new materials and changing concepts. In this sense there is no "traditional" native art. Generically, however, the altered or new form of the art is still part of the tradition. Once a tradition ceases to adapt to changing conditions it becomes a mere museum exhibit.

Huichol Yarn Painting

For the Huichol people, art is a means of encoding and channeling sacred knowledge (holy; pertaining to religion). It is considered a form of prayer, providing direct communion with the sacred realm. Every item carries heavily symbolic, esoteric and beautifully rendered symbols (pictures that represent words or messages).

The Huichols are descendants (people born of a specific ancestor) of the Aztecs and are related to the Hopi of Arizona. After withstanding the Spanish Invasion, they fought to keep their culture alive, despite the presence of their Mexican neighbors. When game was plentiful and they were free to roam the vast mountain ranges and deserts of their homeland, they were not farmers, but hunters.

Huichol woman and child These women and men keep alive the ancient traditions which remain a precarious reality for an indigenous people still relatively unaffected by Western civilization. But, encroaching paper mills, airstrips, and government forces are rapidly altering this. Soon, all that will be left of this so-called "primitive" culture will be memories and the yarn paintings surviving in the hands of collectors.

A Huichol man and boy in traditional dress on a Melaque Street. Gerry Soroka, 2009

Today the Huichols are representatives of a pre-Columbian shamanic tradition which is still functioning according to the ceremonies of their remote past. They practice agriculture and daily attempt to salvage every aspect of their unique culture as they can. However, urban Mexico grows closer every day.

Huichol working on a beaded jaguar head