Traditional crafts

Traditional crafts have been passed on through generations, tell stories about how we live & who we are, carry the artisans frequencies & store traditional knowledge. Many traditional crafts are of very high frequency, often strongly rooted in nature due to the choice of materials & motives, the ways of producing the items and also because traditional crafts originated at times when the frequency on this planet was still higher than it is now. Many of these crafts have been pushed into inferiority & marginalisation by industrialisation & a Europe-centered global economy of a much lower frequency. Yet many of these arts have survived, are revived, combined with new technologies & ideas, and still carry the same high frequencies as they always have, esp. when carried out by high-frequency artists of which there are many.

Embodying true sustainability, traditional crafts typically use abundant locally available materials & knowledge, and many are carried out by indigenous people who hold the practical & historical knowledge surrounding these crafts. When indigenous techniques & motives are used it is important to reciprocate with respect, supporting the communities connected to the artisans & creating true collaboration & equity. Often the best way is to directly connect artisan communities to markets, supporting self-sufficiency. Many indigenous skills & crafts are endangered, but acknowledging & supporting indigenous skills can revive disappearing crafts and the cultures in which they are embedded. Living true cultural & social responsibility in every aspect of a business or initiative is a reflection of high frequencies.

Unfortunately due to its marginalisation there is a tendency of artisanal work to be sold at luxury markets, rendering it inaccessible for the majority of people, perpetuating inequality. Hopefully ongoing changes in our financial systems & the ways in which we trade will eliminate such exclusiveness so that all of us can enjoy the frequencies, beauty & love that come with hand-crafted art.

Oma Traditional Textile Design

Laos

Traditional Oma textile design database. Securing cultural intellectual property rights for the Oma ethnic group of Laos. Securing 3 Cs’ rule for the use of indigenous & traditional art: consent, credit, compensation©. Excess to full database provided on individual basis upon request.

Baskets of Africa

pan-Africa

Hand-woven baskets, made from natural, traditional fibers & dyes, using traditional indigenous weaving techniques. Preserving indigenous cultural heritage. Supporting artisan women & their families. Fairtrade. Collaboration rooted in mutual trust & respect.

Batak weaving

North Sumatra, Indonesia

Rangsa ni Tonun – The sacred Batak weaving tradition for the production of textiles, which is in danger of becoming extinct. Film produced by Sandra Niessen, anthropologist, Netherlands. Director & filmer: Javanese artist MJA Nashir.

Indego Africa

pan-Africa

Hand-made artisan crafted baskets, home décor & accessories, using heritage techniques incl. raffia-weaving & woodcarving, hand-embroidery & wool-spinning. Empowering women, youth & refugees across Africa. 100% of profits go into education of artisans, building long-term, transparent relationships. Fair wages far above standard. Use of local natural materials incl. fibers indigenous to the countries & traditional natural dyes. Reduced waste in production process by recycling, upcycling & repurposing materials.

Acoustic Pottery

West Virginia, USA

Inspired by “The Hidden Messages in Water” (Masuru Emoto), Lockbridge Pottery plays music in the kiln room during firing of crystalline glazing, creating beautiful crystal patterns. Different types of music are used. Family-run since > 40 years. Jeff Diehl comes from a family line of potters with German roots, keeping traditional craft alive & merging it with new techniques & ideas. Traditional German salt kiln built form salvaged rocks. High-quality craftsmanship.

Ancestral Rich Treasures of Zuni Cooperative

New Mexico, USA

Zuni artisan community of > 7000 artists incl. carvers, jewelers, metal smiths, painters, potters, silversmiths, textile weavers, wood workers. Zuni Artists Owned & Managed Cooperative. ARTZ Cooperative Gallery – meeting place for Zuni community. Zuni Pueblo ArtWalk features artisan studios many of which are open daily for drop-ins. Ensuring authentic products by selling directly from Zuni community to those who love the art.

Aran Sweater Market

Aran Islands, Ireland

Hand-made knitwear. 100% wool from sheep raised on organic pastures. Made for durability. Entirely produced on the Aran Islands from raising the sheep to finished product. Use of traditional stitches which hold the history of generations of skilled knitters & designers. A celebration of the long tradition of Aran knitwear.

Northmen Guild

Scandinavia & Latvia

Fascinating guild of authentic northern craftsmen who live & teach their skills incl. carpentry, sustainable living, leather work, blacksmithing (knives, swords, axes), watch-making, organic food & wild foraging, wooden house-building with tenon joinery (no nails, screws, glue). Hand-made, for durability, with simple tools, using natural materials. Flourishing by living an endangered, rich heritage & sharing it with the world.

Angela Damman

Yucatán, Mexico

Reviving endangered, ancient Mayan techniques of using henequén, and now also sansevieria, plant fibers (both Agave). Woven bags & home decor made from fibers of agave plants grown without fertilizers, herbicides and irrigation. All steps from growing the plants to weaving the finished product happen within a 50-mile radius in Yucatán, supporting rural Mayan communities & their artisan knowledge. Organic dyes used for colouring.

Wildcrafted Ceramics

USA

Hand-made, wildcrafted pottery made from unprocessed clays collected across the US. Made by Pascal Baudar who is also a specialist in foraging, cuisine based on wild edible plants & in traditional food preservation. Variety of pottery techniques used. Combining nature’s food & art.

Fabriulous

China

Handmade fabric, accessories, homeware, vintage products made by rural indigenous artisans of minority ethnic groups. Supporting & reviving endangered heritage crafts incl. weaving, horsetail embroidery, natural dying, brocade & batik. Made from locally grown, natural materials. Supply chain transparency. Reducing waste via upcycling & repurposing of products & fabrics.

1050°

Southern Mexico

Pottery artisan cooperative passionately creating high-quality, simple & elegant kitchenware, restoring Oaxaca’s, Chiapas’ & Puebla’s pottery tradition. Authentic, transparent, drawing from collective knowledge & memory. Part of Innovando la Tradición, a non-profit organization dedicated to keeping pottery alive. Strong community of 50 potters focused on mutual respect. Driving transformation via solidarity economy, sharing, free dissemination of ideas & fair prices. Made from local Earth in deep connection with nature.

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Artist Hotspot

Rowena Scotney
Multimedia artist
Based in England, UK

Find out more via her website:
www.rowenascotney.com

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