We’re always talking about the value of Wayuu bags but for the first time, we wanted you to meet one of our many artisans through a short Q&A.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Many artisans are quite shy, but Rosa dressed up for the occasion and let me ask her a few questions.
Find out she began crocheting, what crocheting means to the women of this tribe and what is the curious mask on her face.
I hope you enjoy the short interview!
TRANSLATES TRANSCRIPT
Q: How did you learn to crochet?
R: I began crocheting a very long time ago, since I was about 5 or 7 years old. I started crocheting by watching, and I simply observed. I also started coming to Riohacha to sell the bags my family made. And that’s how I started being an artisan. By watching other women sell and crochet.
Q: What is the mask you have on?
R: Wayuu woman use this to cover their faces and to protect them from the sun. It also removes sunspots. This powder comes from a tree that can be found by the edge of the river. You take the fruit from the tree and keep it in a jar and apply it to your face. I don’t know the name of this fruit in Spanish but in Wayuunaiki it’s called Mashuka.
Q: What changes have you seen since working with us?
R: The change has been for the better because I don’t have to look for customers to buy from me and I can work and crochet with one person only. Inside every bag there is a dream for which I am crocheting. Other female artisans crochet to feed their children. As I don’t have children, I crochet to get ahead and pay for my studies.
Q: What would you like people to know?
That they value craftsmanship and work of us artisans. Many bargain, forcing us to live in miserable conditions. I don’t feel this is fair, that the work of an artisan is poorly paid.
Q: Are you the head of your household?
R: Well in my case, as I’m a single woman and I don’t have any attachment or children, I work to sustain myself and my mother.
Q: What does a Wayuu bag represent for you?
R: For me a Wayuu bag represents the dream of each and every woman. The designs represent our culture. Engrained in every bag is our culture. I cannot abandon Wayuu bags because I was born with these bags. I was born crocheting. Since I was little they’ve always been there. Sometimes I even miss crocheting when I’m working on something else.
The bags are just unique, they represent patience and hope, fabulous art,
nothing to be compared to an orijinal WayuuBag. Rosa is very sincere.
ThankU for sharing.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment!