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6.
June
2016.
INDIGENOUS MEXICAN COMMUNITIES PRAISE TOURS THAT REVITALISE WEAVING TRADITIONS

PRESS RELEASE

June 2016

INDIGENOUS MEXICAN COMMUNITIES PRAISE TOURS THAT REVITALISE WEAVING AND CRAFT TRADITIONS

Palmira Serra, a native Mexican who now lives in the UK, has created a way of giving back to the Mexican communities that she grew up in by organising weaving tours that also highlight the importance of this age-old craft-making tradition.

 

Palmira, 48, who studied textiles and design in Mexico City as a young woman, was so attracted to the many indigenous styles of her home country that she has created a series of tours to allow others to appreciate the culture. Palmira has set up Weaving the World so that she can introduce people to the traditional Mexican weaving techniques and at the same time provide direct income to the weavers themselves.

 

Palmira is a huge advocate of the Mexican crafting and weaving traditions, and is keen to bring attention to the weaving industry, along with many other artisanal crafts, which is currently in decline. Palmira has created Weaving the World, which runs tours for people to visit Teotitlan del Valle, located just outside of Oaxaca City, and learn about the weaving industry.

 

Palmira says: ‘Teotitlan is one of several villages in the area where weaving forms an integral part of the livelihood of its few thousand residents. The local weavers were no match for industrialised weaving methods and cheap imports, and there was little appreciation of the time and skill that went into weaving using the time honoured methods of the region. Some local weavers moved over to using chemical dyes or less labour intensive methods of production, many simply abandoned their roots and moved to the city in search of work. There was a real danger that these age old techniques were going to disappear altogether.'

 

A recent visit back prompted her to set up weaving tours, which she operates from her home in Cheltenham. She says: ‘When visiting its workshops I was immediately struck by the gentle earnestness of the Zapotec weavers describing skills that have been part of their heritage for over 2000 years. However, recent years have seen major changes in how the outside world regards indigenous skills that have often been preserved by their populations over many centuries. I want to help regrow an appreciation of the true artistic value of these painstaking techniques by inviting people to come on one of my specially designed tours.'

 

Palmira's Weaving the World tours are based on the principles of Fairtrade. She says: ‘Thankfully fairtrade is starting to be applied and local craftspeople are now able to earn their livelihood carrying on employing their native skills.'

 

Nelson, 43, is a local weaver in the village of Teotitlan. He is passionate about keeping the tradition of weaving alive for generations to come. He says: ‘We've woven on a loom for generations. My parents learnt from their parents and from their grandparents. For centuries it's been our main way of earning a living. Weaving has always been a family activity but it's also a social one.

 

‘Since time immemorial the men in our community have looked after the sheep and have sheared them and the women have combed (carded) the wool and spun it. The children have run around but at the same time have learnt from very young the secrets of dyeing with plants and minerals. At home men and women have woven equally; we do it this way because that's how we saw our parents and grandparents do it. It's our way of earning a living honourably.

 

During her visits Palmira became very aware that changes in the big industries were having a real impact on the local community's traditional weaving methods and economy. Nelson and the rest of the weaving community have watched this happening for years and have been struggling with how to deal with it.

 

He says: ‘Industrialisation has caused profound damage to our activities. We've gradually watched our incomes dwindle. We know that what we do is work well done and we do it with love, but it takes us a long time to finish a rug for example. We can't compete with mass produced rugs but also we don't want to compete - we want our work to be valued and our dedication to preserving our centuries old traditions.

 

‘We do the whole process by hand; we dye in the way which is most respectful to our environment. We plan what we're going to dye based on the design of the rug because afterwards it's impossible to obtain the same colour or tone. We dedicate week to weaving a rug and after we check it over to remove any imperfections. When it's ready we feel proud of our creation. But many tourists haggle with us and tell us that they're expensive. They ask us to reduce the price of our art. It's easy to feel bad about this but we need to feed our families.'

 

Nelson and the other weavers in the community welcome the tours organised by Palmira. ‘Weaving the World tours have given us back our pride in what we do and at the same time we can demonstrate and teach the whole process involved in our activities. We're very pleased to get to know new people who wish to learn how we have made rugs for many centuries. The people who come with WTW are open and willing to learn. It's lovely when they finish a rug and see the result of their labours. They feel as proud as we do.'

 

Nelson's village is considered to be one of the first that was founded by the Zapotecs around 1465. It was originally named Xaquija, which means "celestial constellation. 4,500 people live in or around the village and 90% depend on weaving and the sale of rung. Nelson is proud of their history, adding: ‘Our village is rich in traditions, and in addition we can offer birdwatching. We have species such as the ocellated thrasher, bridled sparrow, dwarf vireo, Oaxaca sparrow, Boucard's wren, gray-breasted woodpecker, slaty vireo, dusky hummingbird, and Sumichrast's scrub-jay. It's a unique place.'

 

Key to keeping the weaving traditions alive down through the generations is about showing the children their art and for them to learn the importance of it within the community. Nelson explains: ‘We try to interest our children in our traditions from when they are young. They begin by doing small tasks such as combing the wool or helping to collect flowers and mosses to dye and, if it's something that interests them, we let them help with dyeing and loom weaving. The most recent generations have incorporated modern designs into the rugs, not only our traditional designs which include Zapotec and Mixtec glyphs and fretwork. Some even use Navajo designs - which is a contentious issue - and more contemporary designs including reproductions of work by famous artists such as as Picasso, Joan Miró, Matisse, Diego Rivera or Rufino Tamayo.

‘The making of the rugs begins the washing of the raw wool to rid it of dirt and residues. Next it is carded then spun into yarn. The yarn is wound into large balls to prepare for dying with natural dyes such as those obtained from the needle bush, indigo, cochineal, "musgo de roca", Brazilwood, Mexican marigold and others.'

 

Weaving the World offers a ten day textile and cultural tour of the area of Oaxaca in small groups accompanied by Palmira with all accommodation and transport included.

 

Palmira is delighted by what is on offer: ‘At the heart of the tour is a four day intensive course in all the techniques of dyeing, spinning and weaving used by the Zapotec people. It's a unique opportunity to meet, interact and learn from people you might only otherwise see only briefly on the other side of a market stall. Each participant will learn about the natural dyeing methods and produce their own textile on a hand loom. There are even walks in the local countryside to gather the various plants used in dyeing.'

 

In addition to the weaving course, the ten days include visits to other villages to see the various handicrafts of the region which have likewise seen a renaissance in the last few years. Palmira adds: ‘There are visits to some of the magnificent Zapotec archaeological sites, numerous museums, including the textile museum of Oaxaca, and some of the indigenous markets where locals come to sells the products of their labours. There is even a day's course in Oaxacan cuisine where participants can learn about local ingredients and cook a typical meal.'

 

‘Weaving the World is very much an opportunity to see how things really are from the inside. My aim is to create a tour that people will truly experience and haverealcontact with a culture that has maintained its values over innumerable generations and come through intact. What's more those on tour will have contributed in a very real way to ensuring that these traditions can continue in a sustainable manner for generations to come.'

 

Weaving the World's next tour takes place on12 - 23 Aug 2016 and Palmira is taking bookings now.

 

-Ends-

 

For more information on Weaving the World, please visit their website atwww.weavingtheworld.co.uk


For an interview, images, or more information please contact
claire@garfunkelcommunications.co.uk/ 07734 702653