Objetos mundanos e ofícios banais: desabilidade dos gestos e genealogia da exclusão moderna

Through the concepts of materiality, mundane objects, and banal crafts, we propose a reflection on the potential of Archaeology and Material Culture Studies in the perception of genealogies of modern exclusion. We will use our ethnographies developed with craftsmen who make soapstone pots in the Ouro Preto and Marina regions of Minas Gerais, Brazil, emphasizing that this is an unofficial occupation. We will explore the sociabilities in which both craftsmen and artifacts participate, noting that this occupation is marked by an ontological abandonment. Through the materiality and mutual constitution processes that characterize collective and social relations, it was possible to identify stigmas associated with manual activities and the disability of gestures, indicating the invisibility and marginalization of both humans (craftsmen) and materials (soapstone pots) from the colonial period to the present day. Today, this process is manifested in how museums treat and display the soapstone pots, as well as in political and legislative issues affecting artisan communities.