Calamarca weaving The Museum of Bolivian AndeanTextiles, where I found the Jalq'a weaver's quote from the last post, really was a treasure trove of of information about Bolivian weavings. Coming after the days in Potosí and Oruro gathering photos of weavings at museums and markets the museum provided a welcome insight into what differentiates the weavings from the different regions. It also helped illustrate in tangible terms what is meant when Bolivia is described as a ‘multicultural and poyethnic country’ where there are 36 ethnic groups recognised. Gathered over forty years, the museum introduces its collection as showing “the Andean people’s lives, dreams and hopes”, and highlighting how the weavings embody the identity of the communities where they are created: “Through the weaving structure, colour distribution and iconographic designs, to this day, each weaving may be used to identify cultures and regions, where men and women alike wear various pieces to portray their identities as well as their world view.” Charazaní weaving The Jalq'a weaver's quote that I posted yesterday came from the museum's reference book“Reading the Artists from the Andes” and it's so fascinating hearing what the weavers themselves have to say, that here are the rest: “You learn by watching” In the traditional learning process of weaving techniques, there are so few explanations; the process depends entirely on how well the future weaver observes. “....when I was little, I had to take care of the animals, llamas, sheep; I used to take them to mountains to find pasture. Up there, while taking care of the animals, I used to play with my cousins, friends and sisters. Just for fun we learned to weave little (stripes) to wrap around our clothes. Then we tried to weave a ch’uspa, the little bag used by men to carry coca leaves. Later on, when I was older, I watched how my mum and grandma wove their llikllas, the ponchos, that’s how I learned, that’s it, you learn by watching... Felisa Choqueribe, Quechua-Aymara culture, Aymaya pampa community, Department of Potosí. Bolívar weaving The rainbow Among Aymara people, a woman is considered a fine weaver when she is able to display the rainbow on her weavings. “People say that grandmothers used to weave quite pretty. After the rain passed, they used to look at the kürmi (rainbow); without pointing at it though, because if you do, people say your finger may rot. They used to imitate the colours, by looking; people say the best weaver was the one able to catch the kürmi in her weaving. These pieces were nice. My Mum used to say “those are k’isas”, they are sweet, because they are so nice. My godmother when she saw a weaving well done used to shout “hay mama jiwaki! Jiwaki!” which means it’s so pretty that just by looking at it you may die...” Maríana Quispe, Aymara culture, Ch’issi community, Department of La Paz. The “t’isnus” These are narrow and thin weavings. They are usually made by young girls, at the age of 5 or 6, while trying to learn how to weave. It is named differently in every community. “In Titicachi we usually keep our things in pipkins, to carry stuff we use little bags. Now that we make crafts, we sew our bags with a machine; we’ve learned to use them. We no longer have to buy bags!! We use t’isnus as ornaments and then we wrap up our bags with t’isnus as well. We also use these bags for children, so they have something to carry their snacks for school. The school is far away, sometimes they have to walk almost two hours; they need somewhere to carry their toasted corn.” Martha Ojeda, Mollo culture, Tarisquía community, Department of La Paz. North Potosí weaving 4 The Mama Thallas weavings The weavings that display special designs and colours are used to establish the level of authority men and women possess in their communities. “...when we are authorities, jilakata for men, mama thalla for women, as a couple, married, we serve our community for a year. For this special occasion, we make specaisl awayus, red and black with designs. We also wear a red [?] and a white hat. This is our attire for the rest of the year. Men wear a poncho, ch’uspa and the awayu. The community chooses us and gives us enough time to prepare, after throughout one year, just like the father and the mother take care of their children, we, the authorities, must take care of the community. Asunta Mamani, Aymara culture, Patacamaya community, Department of La Paz. Calamarca weaving 5 In order to get married, you have to know how to weave People from the layme culture in the northern region of Potosí, measure a woman’s reputatiion by her weaving skills. A man chooses a wife according to the number of weavings she wears and how well made they are. “When I got married, I already knew how to weave llikllas, aqsus, ch’uspas, ch’umpis, all of these pieces. In order to get married, a woman must know how to weave; otherwise people look down on you, criticize you. They even claim that you are not a good woman. That’s why we have to learn how to spin, dye, and then weave from an early age. We gather all the pieces we made througjout the year, and go to the celebration to dance. You have to show your weavings to prove everyone you are a fine weaver. This way mothers will look at you and think of you as a good daughter-in-law, they say, “when she gets married she’ll be able to dress her husband and children.” A woman who is a fine weaver is cared for and respected.” Agustina Sipe, Quechua culture, Llallawa community, Department of Potosí 6 North Potosí weaving 7 About rivers The iconographic designs shown in textiles also represent the weaver’s worldview. The river is a significant element, since it represents the source of life. “We usually weave rivers; we call them mayu in quechua. We weave them is aqsus for us, and pallay unkus for men. A line, then switches to the right, then to the left, all the way to the end. Sometimes we include saras as well, we call it mayu sara (river with corn) and we also include yut’us (quails). Other women make the mayu with stars, so its like during the night time. Do you ever see the river from the sky? I don’t know what you call it in Spanish, we call it wara wara mayu. That’s what we weave. We also weave the sun, that’s simple...” Feliciana Sipe, Yampara culture, Candelaria community, Department of Chuquisaca The mountain has hair and eyes The Andean myth establishes that sacred mountains such as the Akhamani possess human attributes, like eyes and hair. “...when I was little, my grandpa used to say that mountains were sacred by pointing to the Akhamani. He used to say that mountains were alive and took care of the community. He called them achachilas, the elders. Then he would point at the animals and say that llama wool and alpaca wool are the hair of the mountains, and the little lagoons were their eyes. He looked at us, and said that women used mountains’ hair to weave and the lagoons were those little figures – rhombuses – weavers included in the piece. They were eyes, which took care of the weaving and the weaver. People also say that these eyes have to be included to ask for enough water for our crops.” Felipa Vargas, Kallawaya culture, Kañizaya community, Department of La Paz. About horses The iconographic representation of the horse is related to the image of St. James – the Moor Killer – patron of Spain. This Saint is associated to llapa, the Andean god of lightning. Tarabuco weaving “My grandmother used to say that we have to weave cawallus (horses) because that way Tata Santiago (St. James) will help. It’s like the lightning, he gives us strength. It’s Tata Santiago’s horse. When I was little I used to see him at the church. We lit a candle to keep him happy. Then we began to weave. We still weave the Tata’s horses. It will bring us luck! So we weave cawallus with flags! We carry white flags while dancing, to attract good fortune for our crops. That’s why we weave little horses, for good fortune. We weave them standing up, jumping, walking, any way.... we always weave cawallus.” Emiliana Garcia, Yampara culture, Tarabuco communtiy, Department of Chuquisaca. Tarabuco weaving Leaving the museum I felt both impressed and seriously humbled by the thousands of years of tradition compacted into each and every piece so intricate in its detail and so firmly rooted in its own local culture. Wow. Beautiful. And what a vast subject matter to be brushing the surface of!