TablaHuichol

This trilingual digital app on one of the most emblematic works of Huichol art is the product of the efforts of the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico) to bring people closer to key examples of Mexican cultural patrimony.

The result of the temporary exhibition Paths of Light: Huichol Universes in the Museo Nacional de Antropología (National Museum of Anthropology) in Mexico City from December 2016 to April 2017, part of the exhibition series One Piece, One Culture, this app promotes an encounter with the culture of the Wixarika (Huichol) people, an indigenous group in West Mexico, and the essential elements of their worldview through one of their masterpieces: the yarning painting The Vision of Tatutsi Xuweri Timaiweme by José Benítez Sánchez.

The user is guided through this app, which proposes a highly visual, detailed, didactic reading of this work, always offering the freedom to choose the level of depth each time the app is opened to access profound research or to use it more as a tool for consultation; whichever the case, it can always lead to a way to discover something new. Each visit and journey through the app is an encounter with the eternal richness and dynamism of Huichol culture, while serving as a gateway into this masterpiece of Mexican cultural patrimony, an eloquent source on the culture it represents.

In addition to providing information on the creator and context of the work, this digital platform offers diverse paths for its reading. With an efficient optimized interface that permits close-ups of the work through a high quality image, one can navigate it selectively, visiting its general sections, or each of its symbolic elements, its figures, and the stories it refers to.

The app offers proposed interpretations of this work based on the words of its creator, mythic accounts, and the ethnographic reflections of twentieth- and twenty-first-century scholars. This interwoven context is the backdrop for meticulous observation and iconographic analysis of the elements in this work, as well as others by the same artist, and in general, different types of nierika panels, both for ceremonial use and exhibition, old examples and contemporary ones.


This app facilitates the exploration of this complex work, which requires intuition, observation, the desire to enjoy it and seek empathy through it. At the same time it is an invitation to engage in an encounter with this emblematic piece of Huichol culture that allows viewers to explore what the work asks of them: an individual and unique interpretation.

Likewise, the app has a glossary of terms to familiarize the user with the Wixarika language and thought. The extensive list of bibliographic sources supporting the content also provides suggestions for further consultation for anyone interested in knowing more about Huichol culture. The app has three platforms in one, making all the content available in three languages: Spanish, Wixarika, and English.

All of this content makes this app an unprecedented digital publication that crystallizes the hard work invested in research, conservation, and spreading awareness of the cultural patrimony of Mexico that the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History) performs on a daily basis by placing it within the reach of countless users free of charge through the digital humanities.