The case of qom handicraft from Fortin Lavalle, Argentina: the preparation of the commodity

Abstract

In this paper we analyze how the qom handicraft form Fortin Lavalle —Chaco-Argentina— interacts with the market. We conceive handicraft not only as an object but as a process that takes place over a series of stages. Here we will focus on the stages of organization and sale. This process is based on the commercial potential of the handicraft. Then, from the involvement of state, NGO and merchant a series of techno-scientific, preliminaries or disciplinary techniques are put in place in order to contribute to the construction of a space of calculation, to enhance the interchangeability of the object. By reviewing the application of such disciplinary techniques, we see the tensions that appear at the time of the commodification process. Tensions that are not resolved throughout the process but that are being regulated by the actors involved in it.