Kamayurá Architecture Manual Preserves Indigenous Building Knowledge
In Brazil's Xingu Indigenous Park, the Kamayurá community has developed the Manual da Arquitetura Kamayurá to preserve their traditional construction methods. The initiative was spearheaded by local leader Kanawayuri L. Marcello Kamayurá, who partnered with architect Clarissa Morgenroth, whom he encountered during her travels. Morgenroth engaged the Escola da Cidade and its Habita-Cidade platform, leading a team of students and teachers to Ypawu Village. There, they found that some indigenous members possessed drawing abilities, allowing them to depict their village and its characteristic oval-shaped ocas (houses). Constructed from forest materials, these homes typically endure for 8 to 10 years and are reconstructed using salvaged resources. The manual seeks to standardize building knowledge among the Kamayurá, with plans for an English edition for global distribution.
Key facts
- The Kamayurá people created the Manual da Arquitetura Kamayurá to preserve traditional building knowledge.
- The project was initiated by local leader Kanawayuri L. Marcello Kamayurá and architect Clarissa Morgenroth.
- It involved collaboration with Escola da Cidade's Habita-Cidade platform and a student/teacher workshop.
- Fieldwork took place in the Ypawu Village in Kamayurá territory in the Upper Xingu, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
- The manual documents the construction of oval-shaped ocas, the primary architectural unit, built in circles using forest materials.
- Ocas measure approximately 30 by 10 meters, can reach 10 meters in height, and last 8 to 10 years.
- Construction is a familial, collective process with no waste; old materials are reused or burned.
- A printed version is under review by the Kamayurá community, with plans for a future English edition.
Entities
Artists
- Kanawayuri L. Marcello Kamayurá
- Clarissa Morgenroth
- Luis Octavio de Faria e Silva
Institutions
- Parque Indígena do Xingu
- Escola da Cidade
- Habita-Cidade
- Modos de Habitar: Arquiteturas Tradicionais
Locations
- Xingu
- Mato Grosso
- Brazil
- Cerrado
- Amazônia
- Aldeia Ypawu
- Alto Xingu