OSKLEN ASHANINKA

fotografia // design de estampas e de camisetas [osklen — 2015]

Osklen's 2015 Summer Collection was a creative tribute to the Ashaninka people, native to the Amazon, in the region of Acre and Peru. During the research and inspiration process, we were in the Apiwtxa village of the Ashaninka twice, immersing ourselves in the culture of these people. From these visits, I generated images that were used to create prints for the collection and that appear in the art book and the documentary by Oskar Metsavaht.

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The collection created jointly between Osklen and the Ashaninka was used as an example of a respectful partnership by several international media outlets, as the project's partner community was the protagonist at all times. The exposure generated by the collection was important for them to tell their story and report their battles - Osklen was a communication platform for them. It was the Ashaninka who defined the form and amount of remuneration from the project, in addition to the investment they would make with the money: The royalties allocated to the community were used to implement improvements in the village school and to purchase land in Cruzeiro do Sul, in Acre, to build a headquarters for the Ashaninka association.​

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After the collection, I continued the partnership with the Ashaninka by creating the Ashaninka Photography Workshop project. I met a demand from the leaders who wanted to use photography as a new tool in defending their territory and as a language to tell their stories (learn more).