Between adoberas and adoberos. Approaches to heritage from practice and knowlege

Abstract

The architectural landscape of the Quebrada
de Humahuaca is mostly made up of walls built
with adobe, which is an historical technique with
permanence until today. The production of adobes
is a practice that develops in local towns as a daily
activity, where not only the members of a family
are participants but also other settlers can work
together. It is of interest in this work to observe
how the role of the “adoberos” and their practices
are part of a social plot that is visible in the
construction of earthen heritage in the area. An
analysis focused on practices, and even more on
the actors that execute them, enables an analysis
of heritage that transcends the architectural
objects. We will approach to this problematic from
the perspective of “adoberas” and “adoberos” of
the towns of Huichaira, Juella and Huacalera, to
the forms of transmission of knowledge, social ties
and transformations of practices. It is proposed to
explore how in the domestic world this is a task
that is part of the daily life in which different roles
are defined, as well as how knowledge starts from
the family environment and then it continues in
broader dynamics and how finally the possible
transformations and innovations are inherent at
adobes and their processes.