A Brief Summary of Huichol Culture and Art

The Huichols (or Wixaritari in their own language) are an indigenous ethnic group who live in the Western Sierra Madre Mountains of Mexico. While all of the sixty-two different indigenous groups of Mexico have been assimilated into the national culture to some degree, the Huichols are notable as the group which has most retained its traditional lifestyle. 

A profoundly religious people, the Huichols do not separate sacred from secular. For them, the corn and deer upon which they depend are gifts from their ancestral deities, not economic commodities. The right to farm land in Huichol villages is earned through ceremonies and sacrifices to the community, not through simple monetary purchases of so many acres. In the Huichol language, there is no word for money.

The Art

Huichol art reflects their worldview. Their handmade clothing is embroidered with colorful scenes of their mythology, serving as a constant reminder of their ancestors and community. Statues and jewelry, with their bold colors and intricate patterns, represent figures from Huichol oral tradition – jaguars, deer, or the sacred peyote cactus critical to their ceremonies. Yarn paintings present scenes from their sacred stories, often re-imagined by the artist as a result of his or her own mystical experience.

The Threat

The Huichols’ way of life is under threat, however, from a wider Mexican society which has no use for indigenous ways. Land-hungry farmers and ranchers seize Huichol communal property while police look on; the government relocates entire Huichol villages to build dams for electricity. Pushed into smaller and smaller parcels of marginal land, facing discrimination in mestizo cities and courts, the Huichols find their culture at imminent risk of disappearing from history.

In order to preserve their unique culture, the Huichols want to change their relationship with the outside world from one of dependency and exploitation, to self-sufficiency and sustainability. Many Huichol communities have turned to selling their handicrafts for profit in small venues across Mexico. Traditionally, the Huichols have not received fair prices for their artwork. Nevertheless, if guarded against exploitation, the sale of artwork both contributes economically to Huichol communities and encourages the appreciation of Huichol culture by the broader Mexican society. Two significant challenges present themselves, however. First, due to their relative isolation from Mexican society in the remote Sierra Madre, the majority of Huichol communities lack the common business know-how and the markets necessary to sell their artisanal wares. Additionally, this remoteness makes it difficult for the outside world to learn about and appreciate this vibrant indigenous culture.

Denise asks for your help.

The Auris-Cebolleta Relationship

The Cebolleta, Jalisco community has been a friend of the Auris Project for more than three years. we became acquainted with the community through Santos Bautista, a leader of the village and now our good friend. Santos and other Huichols travel hundreds of miles to pray and worship on what they call the Last Door of their sacred route, the Wirikuta. This important cultural site happens to be located in the same municipality that the Auris Project runs some of its programs: Catorce, San Luis Potosi, Mexico.  As the Auris Project came to know one another, a trust developed and our project was formed. A trip to Cebolleta confirmed that the community was in dire straits. It is unusual for Huichols to ask the help of non-Huichols because of enduring and persistent oppression and discrimination they have faced in Mexico. 

The village sits on an extremely remote mountaintop in the Sierra Madres. Due to a lack of resources and constant threats to their land base (Huichols are subsistence farmers), the villagers have been struggling to survive. As a result, the community does not have the resources to produce their centuries-old artwork, a mainstay of the culture and a method to bring revenue into the village. 

Our Small Project

The Auris Project is working to help the 300 community members of Cebolleta, Jalisco obtain support and materials to meet their basic needs and begin to  produce their artwork at fair market prices and increase international awareness of their unique culture. 

Qualified international volunteers from the Auris Project will help support community leaders as they acquire basic business skills to ensure that the people themselves are empowered through the initiative. 

The project is designed to help the Huichols forge a more equitable relationship with the world beyond the Sierras without jeopardizing their cultural integrity.