“A pleasurable job”… Communities of women ceramicists and the long path of Paulistaware in São Paulo

Abstract

Cultural practices have connected generations of women ceramists as a gender manifestation in Southeast São Paulo, Brazil, from pre-colonial into contemporary times. This long process is shown by way of a concise overview that begins by contextualizing the appropriation and transformation of Portuguese coarse ware into Paulistaware, as a household production for self-consumption. Then, other people, materials, and different meanings across different times and contexts, this household production established commercial networks that which took ceramics into many Paulista household. In the 20th century, Paulistaware began to be sold as handicraft. The main result of this work is understanding that knowledge was the greatest legacy passed down from generation to generation, constantly activating a way of making and using ceramic vessels, reflecting cultural practices, shaping values and social relationships that defined the Paulista identity.