Extend your hands with Needles and Pins and huipiles

While re-organizing a bookcase, I came across an old copy of SELVEDGE magazine. Of interest was the review of “Needles and Pins: Textiles and Tools” exhibition (Santa Fe’s Museum of International Folk Art). What struck me about the article was the following quote regarding the exhibition’s premise:

«Cloth is made, embellished, or constructed with tools that started out as a simple extension of the human hand».

«We have gold in our hands and we did not even know it» –Aasif Ansari, weaver

I started out this post wanting to write about hands and craft but got distracted when I came across huipiles made by Lina Bartula. Who follows this blog knows I have a passion for huipiles. (In fact, tomorrow I will be participating at the Lanificio Mercatino with 18 Muy Marcottage huipiles.)

Lena explains what hupils are to her: «Huipil is a Maya woman’s traditional blouse; it is her identity, a marker of her village, her status, her background and beliefs. The weaving of this garment is both a sacred duty and a personal statement, woven with her own designs, colors and ideas, yet all within the context of her tradition».

ALL ROSES, ALL THE TIME, huipil by Lena Bartula: «In order to illuminate the stories of women whose voices have been forgotten or silenced, I have been creating contemporary huipils, the name for traditional Mexican blouses, each of which represents a particular woman or group of women».

Frida painted onto a huipil by Lena Bartula + MENSAJES GUARDADOS.

Woman weaving textiles for huipiles using a backstrap loom: Unlike a foot loom, backstrap weaving limits the width. That is why huipiles must be pieced together.