The Krahô, the tubers, the hôxwa and artists: about some relations in festa da batata

Abstract

In what follows we will look at the Krahô Potato Festival, which in the language of this ethnic group is called Yetÿopi. This ritual refers to the knowledge acquired by the Krahô thanks to the contact that one of them had with the potato and other tubers in mythical times. Today this celebration has a series of acts that build the ritual as a whole consistent with the production of Krahô knowledge. One of these acts is the dance of the hôxwa around the bonfire at a certain moment of the party. The hôxwa will be the nodal point of this article, which seeks to make some notes about the relationship of alterity provided by the aesthetic appeal that their dance produces. Finally, it is challenging to think about the unfolding of this appeal, since this dance has also become a manifestation recognized as artistic by artists and presented in the context of the spectacle, not limited to the ritual feast held inside the village.