Handcraft helps us to survive.

I am a young woman from the Paiter village of the Suruí people of the Kaban clan.

I am the daughter of Rolon Suruí. She is also my teacher, because ever since I was a little girl, she taught me handcrafts such as pottery.

And I try to learn more as I think about future generations.

We produce various types of ceramics made from clay.

We have large ones to make “Xixa”, a traditional drink; but also used for cooking foods.

We leave the village, which is in a forest, in search of clay that is a long distance from the village.

When we carry the clay we also practise rituals. As for example, one cannot have intercourse when one is going to go in search of clay and nobody can shout when the clay is being taken from the river.

And whoever carries cannot stand up quickly, otherwise the ceramic will be fragile. It has to be left to set for 3 minutes. But this is something indigenous.

The weather has made our pottery production very difficult. When it rains, the river becomes very fast-flowing and there is no way to get the clay out. The clay is not found all over the place. There are specific places where it is found.

And this work is our day-to-day sustenance.  It is sold online over the social networks, like Instagram and WhatsApp.

Our work is hard, but we love what we do.