#losgauchosproject

Gaucho boiling water for maté

The Gaucho story is a sad, romantic and lonely one. In short the original Gauchos were the illegitimate children of the Indigenous Indians living in Argentina and the Spanish conquistadors who arrived in the Sixteenth century. They were not recognized by society, had no rights, and were pushed out of the towns and settlements to wander the pampas. They lived a nomadic lonely life.

Maté is their cultural identity, it is so ingrained in Gaucho life you can separate a gaucho from his kettle about as easily as from his horse, or his cigarettes. So far I have learnt that Gauchos ride like pampas gangsters, drink a lot of maté and smoke a lot of cigarettes.

Check out the hashtag #losgauchosproject on instagram for images of maté, these men and their horses…and follow me as the project unfolds http://www.instagram/cinders_p