Tuesday, June 19, 2012

A visit with the Awamaki women - WOW!'

Today we visited Awamaki, a textile co-op in Patacancha. Up, up, up we went again to approximately 13,000 ft but this time by bus. Although I am not so sure if it was easier by foot or by the 30 plus hairpin turns it took to get there!

The co-op covers four areas- spinning, weaving, dyeing, knitting and they have 44 women they work with. The focus is on using sustainable tourism (low impact tourism) to help the women provide for their families as well as preserve part of the rich Andean culture. During our visit we did not interact with the town just the weavers as to not disrupt their daily life.

Both Stephanie and I met Victoria, the oldest woman in the co-op and you can see us each pictured with her.

Before Awamaki, The Andean women were occupied helping the men with traditional daily work so there was some deterioration in the Quechua weaving traditions. Awamaki has been able to bring that tradition back. A traditional weaving that may take about 2 weeks to make will sell for 100 soles all the while allowing the women to still keep up their household duties. Interestingly enough, the women are becoming the "bread winners" (talk about women's empowerment!) and they are also more opt to put the money they make back into the home. One of the changes due to the co-op is that many women have been able to provide a light bulb for their kitchens- the benefit is they can do more in their household after dark including more spinning and weaving when before the work day had to end with day light.

The pieces they make are full of symbolism. They tell stories of the Spanish conquistadors as well as Andean history. Each piece has a functional purpose and is not just a beautiful piece to hang on a wall.
Girls begin learning to spin at age 6 or younger and by age 12 when they have mastered the spinning process they learn to weave. Spinning takes about 60% of the time to make a piece start to finish. Often the daughters are spinning all of the time because it is so time consuming. The weaving process is very complicated but what is just wonderful is how their patterns can often imitate those found in nature. The "V" criss-cross pattern water can make is one of the most common in their weavings. So much advanced planning must go into every pattern and it is a mathematical process. They don't count they just do it- it is such a learned process because they start with the simple patterns when they first learn and then over time it becomes so second hand (similar to walking and talking) that they can just throw in an alpaca or a condor here and there. It is just so incredible to watch the process unfold!

The weavings are made from variety of fiber with sheep and alpaca being the most common. Sheep fiber was originally brought from Spain and is a bit coarser than the alpaca. Goat fiber used for ropes is very coarse.
Alpaca fiber is very soft and one of the most common fibers. Vicuña is the most prized fiber and softest fiber but they can only be sheared once every three years.

Natural dying has also been able to make a come back through the co-op despite the introduction of the synthetic fibers and colors. As a traditional technique there are many different shades that may come from one "recipe" so the co-op is working one trying to come up with a more precise process. But, where do the colors come from?

The Cochinilla beetle, found on the prickly cactus, can make up to 30 different colors - all shades of red. It takes 70,000 beetles to make one kilo of dye (FYI... When the use of synthetic dyes was outlawed by the US food industry, they used the beetle to make meats and strawberries more appealing - GROSS! And for all you red lipstick wearers, it is also used it to make some of different shades of red).

Kinsacucho plant has a fungus that grows on it and it is used to make teale and blue shades. Prior to this discovery, those colors were imported from Africa.

Yellow comes from a small little flower and can get everything from a mustard color to an almost neon shade.

Grey blue silver comes from the eucalyptus tree.

Whites, tans, grays, browns, and black are all natural alpaca shades that are never dyed. But, nuts and the ground shells are used for browns to black shades on the sheep fibers.

Also a second dip into the dye bath gives a lighter shade - red vs. pink

Health care for the Awamaki women comes from natural medicines and herbal teas. They are not so quick to see a doctor. They may start by asking their neighbors for advice, then visit the clinic new to their community, followed by a trip to Ollanta if necessary. Often a problem can go on for a year before someone would go to Cusco for what we consider proper health care.

Animals are more important for what they can provide vs the meat they can get from it. For example, cattle are more useful for working the fields vs. on the dinner table. Homes are made from adobe and they make benches right on the sides to provide seating. They leave all the extra food on the floor to feed the guinie pigs and then after a big party their will usually only be a male and female left. Fruits and vegetables can only be bought on Tuesday and Wednesday's and that will be what will last them for the week. They cook over an adobe based stove with wood on top. They truly use all that they have around them and use it to its best... It is really amazing to see how this community can not only survive but thrive on such simple means in comparison to all we have at our finger tips at home.

Until mañana!
Miss T

2 comments:

World Leadership School said...

Very interesting and educational indeed.Thanks Ms. T. for a very detailed descriptions.I can almost picture everything in my mind so vividly.Love the pics too.Say hello to everyone and take care. Hugs and kisses from the Smyczek's.

Unknown said...

I love the way these women work to bridge their past and present. Thank you for sharing the beautiful photos and descriptions of the cloth making process!

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