Gathering life, memory and ancestry through heritage education among valleys and streams (RS)

Abstract

This article addresses heritage education as a practice of valuing memory, ancestry, and civic awareness, focusing on the Arrebanhando - Residência Artística Urbana (RAU) ceramics studio, located in Arroio do Meio (RS) and part of the Entre Vales e Arroios tourist route. The extreme weather events that hit Rio Grande do Sul between 2023 and 2024 forced the displacement of this cultural space, while also revealing archaeological remains of ancestral Guarani communities that inhabited the Taquari Valley. This work investigates the transformations of a territory marked by different layers of occupation: from the original indigenous presence, through its exploitation as a pottery workshop, to its reinterpretation as an artistic residence dedicated to rescuing the traditional knowledge of Guarani women, especially the coil technique in ceramic making. The methodology combines bibliographic research on territoriality, collective memory, and heritage education with interviews with ceramist Cláudia Jung, exploring the subjective dimension of place through affectivity and belonging. Environmental disasters caused not only material losses and human displacement but also unveiled a previously buried cultural heritage, highlighting the Guarani presence in the region and opening opportunities for preservation and musealization policies. The study highlights the importance of heritage education projects that value both tangible and intangible heritage, emphasizing the leading role of women – from Guarani women in the past to the contemporary practices of the ceramist – and proposing reflections on the relationship between humanity and nature, memory and cultural identity, resistance and territorial reconstruction.