Creating a Connected Textile Community
The Textile Museum of Indigenous and Afro-American Peoples just opened in Mexico City last June and I finally visited it last week. As a a textile passionate and a local I will give you my impressions of this museum, which is the only one in this city that is dedicated completely to textiles.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
Going into the WARP Annual Gathering, I was equal parts anxious and excited but mainly very grateful for the opportunity. As a textile student and scholarship recipient, the fact that I’d get to spend three days learning from experienced artists and makers was mind-blowing.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
The original peoples of Mexico have a long history of spinning and weaving wild and native cotton, using a drop spindle and a back strap loom. However, today only a handful of people in a few communities still produce cotton thread. The Oaxaca coast is one of 11 sites of origin of G hirsutum within Mexico and home to at least five colors of cotton.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
Every year one of the important tasks at the Business Meeting, held during the Annual Gathering, is the election of new board members. Currently the Board of WARP has nine members, each with a three-year term. We have only one board position to fill, and thanks to our Nominating Committee, made up of a mix of board and non-board members, our candidate is Susan Albert of San Antonio, Texas.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
So many WARP members are also authors who have published amazing books and documentaries.
There are many stories of members involved with communities around the world and we can actually travel through their books: From Guatemala, Peru and México to Vietnam, Morocco, India and much more.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
While WARP Gatherings are a lot about learning, we also plan in some serious fun, both textile and non-textile related. This year we are taking that a step further. We have three field trips scheduled for Field Trip Friday, AND some ideas for designing your own adventures that day, AND a great list of things you can do to explore SE Ontario before or after the Gathering.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
I have wanted to visit Bhutan ever since it opened its doors to tourism in 1974. I was drawn by the “Shangri-la” allure of this remote Buddhist kingdom on the southern slopes of the eastern Himalayas that considers Gross National Happiness more important than Gross National Product. It remained on my must-visit list for decades, but there was always another destination that beckoned first.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL
You are near a marketplace somewhere you have not been before, and almost inevitably are greeted (or accosted) by children of any age wanting to sell you something. Do they get to go to school? Just asking can be good, as it shows that someone who cares is watching. But it does not guarantee that the answers you get will be the truth. I have lived in Guatemala for 26 years now, and I want to share the bare bones outlines of three street selling kids I have known.
INGLÉS/ESPAÑOL