Day 8: Elizabeth’s Story

I was thrilled to arrive for class today to see that the women had finished their embroidery for their bracelets. We were all eager to get to start constructing the pieces when we discovered there was no electricity in the women’s area. Since the class project required a iron we were at a standstill for the first 1 1/2 hours of the class.

While we waited, the women continued to work on embroidery for various class projects they wanted to make again. At one point it was just me and Elizabeth at the table and she started to tell me about how she wanted to go the U.S. after she is released to teach embroidery to people. “But,” she said, “I don’t think they will give me a VISA because I am here.” Then she told me her story:

“I started working when I was 9 years old. I worked in a woman’s home. I cleaned, I learned to cook, and I took care of the household and the babies. I am the fifth of eight children. My mom didn’t have the money to pay for my school so I paid for my entire schooling myself. In the mornings I worked right up until I left for school. Then in the afternoons I went to school and studied. I finished secondary school.”

Elizabeth was arrested after being in a stopped car with her in-laws, who were trafficking drugs. She didn’t know there were drugs in the car and was getting a ride back to Ayacucho after visiting her in-laws. The in-laws claimed she was involved too, hoping it would reduce their sentence and she received a 13 year prison term.

“Now I want to study to be a lawyer. It’s because of my experience. I didn’t know anything about the drugs or make a single cent from drugs, but I’m here. The lawyers are in favor of the state. They don’t defend you, they just want you to get sentenced. You can get a lawyer to defend you, but you have to pay. The lawyers just care about money. I want to be a lawyer who fights for people.”

However, she also recognizes the reality of being incarcerated.

“Now, I have a mark on me. When I leave, no one will want to hire me because I’ve been here. For the rest of my life, I will have this on my record and people will judge me.”

Embroidered butterfly and hummingbird bracelet by Marleny

Embroidered butterfly and hummingbird bracelet by Marleny

I’ve noticed that this trip the women have been embroidering butterflies. As Elizabeth told me her story, and her dreams and hopes, the transformative power of the butterfly came to my mind. They begin as tiny creatures, so easily crushed, yet through their metamorphosis they become something even more beautiful that cannot be held back. They achieve freedom.

 
Everyday the women are working towards this freedom, not just from the prison, but from what society and the stigma of incarceration tells them they can be. Everyday they are building their cocoon, so that when they are released, they can fly.

Day 8: Works of Art

Yesterday, some women outside the jewelry class came over to observe what the class was making and, as they talked about which pieces they liked and why, one woman looked up from her work and said, “These are works of art.”

I want to take a minute to talk about value. When I started Ruraq Maki in 2009 the women were undervaluing their work. In 2011 we did a formal cost analysis and discovered that they were pricing their items for less than the cost to make them. This was partially due to a knowledge gap about pricing, but also due to an undervaluing of the craft and skill that went into their products. Over the years, I had had the privilege of watching the women’s journey towards a genuine sense of value and pride in their work.

Embroidered pendant by Lucila

Embroidered pendant by Lucila

The woman’s words yesterday, “These are works of art,” is another step in that journey. Something is shifting and the women are seeing their goods as something larger than what they do day in and day out. As they push the boundaries of how they use their skills, they are seeing the art, the craft, and the expertise that they bring to their work.

 
Why is this important? Because this shift in viewpoint happens on a larger level. The deeper appreciation of their work leads to a deeper appreciation of themselves. They are no longer just women in prison, they are artists. Though the International Folk Art Market, they became global experts and technicians in the Ayacuchan embroidery. Through the jewelry making, they become creators of works of art. They are becoming something more than they thought, but what they have always been. Embracing their intrinsic value as artists, mothers, women, and humans paves the way for possibility, for the capacity to dream, and for their future.

Day 7: A New Take on Old Designs

A long, long time ago I taught my first manta jewelry class. I wanted to find new, innovative ways for the women to use the manta since that is the resource they have most readily available. The class was a hit, but some of the techniques needed refinement. A few years later came the next iteration of the class. It was a more mature version of the original technique, however, there were still finishing details that were just not quite right.

 

The original manta earrings, circa 2013

The original manta earrings, circa 2013

Today I taught, what I hope, will be the final version of these earrings- and I think we have all those small detail down! The new techniques is cleaner, simpler, and faster, meaning the women will be able to produce more and the pricing for the earrings will be more accessible. My other favorite feature of this technique? It lends itself to embroidered earrings, giving the women an additional design element to work with.  

The new version of the manta earrings

The new version of the manta earrings

The women are becoming more self-sufficient in reviewing their jewelry for quality control. There was a lot of back and forth today about what needed to be changed about x,y, and z to finish off the items more professionally. They even argued about what constituted as “bad work”. This demonstrates a deeper knowledge of jewelry making itself and the women’s commitment to bettering their work. After our talk about quality control last week, it is exciting to see them apply quality control to their products without me reminding them. The path to independence and self-sufficiency starts here!

Day 6: Flourishing

We finally got underway with the jewelry making class with our embroidered pendants. Real talk, there are times I create class projects that don’t turn out as I expect. It either has to do with the women’s skills not being fully developed or the technique is too technical for them. The pendants are the opposite of this problem. They turned out even more beautiful than I expected.

The pendants showcase the women’s skill with the embroidery. You can see that the women use different techniques to accomplish different looks. Before today’s class, my knowledge of embroidery was woefully lacking. I knew the women were talented, but I thought there was just one stitch. I was wrong.

Emboridered Butterfly Pendant

Embroidered Butterfly Pendant

As I waited for the women to finish their embroidery circles, I listened to them swap advice and ideas for how to accomplish a different look. “Is that *stitch I’ve never heard of*? I like it.” “Try *other stitch I’ve never heard of* to get it to look like this.” Clearly, the women are the experts in embroidery. They know what they are doing technically, but also understand when to apply the various stitches and techniques.

Flowers and butterfly by Elizabeth

Flowers and butterfly by Elizabeth

At one point they asked me to try to embroider something. I did so reluctantly, sitting next to master embroiderers, and I learned this- it is a lot harder than it looks. My piece looks like a child did it and even though the women were encouraging, my work was not up to par.

Pushing the creative muscle- yin yang pendant by Lia

Pushing the creative muscle- yin yang pendant by Lia

One thing I love about the pendants is they also gave the women an opportunity to be creative with their embroidery. Often the women are embroidering the same manta motifs day in and day out. These pendants let their creativity loose. There were many designs that didn’t make the cut (they insisted they weren’t good enough) but even those designs were a creative outlet. They stretched the women’s creative imagination and that is catalyst to growth.

What do you think of these pendants? Which is your favorite?

Day 5: Fresh Ideas

I arrived at the prison this morning geared up and ready to start our embroidered jewelry class. Unfortunately, today we hit a glitch because of a health fair in the women’s area of the prison. Doctors, who previously had come to take blood samples from the women, were back with the results and talking with the women about their health. Due to this, it was impossible for us to have our class today, although, I think tending to one’s health is the best reason to miss jewelry making class!

Even though we didn’t have class, I still showed the women the sample piece for today. My sample is a manta pendant, however the class project is actually an embroidered pendant (since I don’t know how to embroider I brought the manta to show them the general idea). I also brought them a sheet of pictures of other embroidered pendants so they could see the project in context. I was shocked at their enthusiasm!

To say they were excited is an understatement. The prospect of making embroidered pendants was thrilling to them. I bought natural colored cloth for them to embroider on but they swiftly suggested also using black so the colors would pop. They also spoke amongst themselves about the different techniques in the photos and what they thought would be most stunning on a pendant. One woman said, “You always bring us new and interesting ideas. This is really beautiful!”

We agreed that I would leave them the supplies and they would work on the embroidery over the weekend. On Monday we will construct the pendants and start our Monday project. This afternoon they are getting together to cut material and work together on their designs.

Although personally I am sad about not spending much time with the women today, I am happy that they are working together in a group independent of me. This gets them in the habit of working collectively and self-sufficiently, which is ultimately more sustainable. For this reason, missing the class today is actually good news!

After I left the women’s area I submitted my revised Education Plan to the administration and received my updated permission document. While we are having the leather working class, the previous professor is ill and we will be working with a new one. Yesterday I visited his workshop and we outlined the class projects and went to town to buy materials for the class.

A peek into our leather trainer's workshop

A peek into our leather trainer’s workshop

The new leather work, Alberto, is a wonderful artisan. He even has had his products sold at the International Folk Art Market with a group of Ayacuhan artisans (he couldn’t attend due to money). He participates in artisan fairs throughout Peru and internationally in other South American countries. My hope is that he can share his experience with the women of these events to help them understand how large fairs work and give them a greater sense of the Peruvian market.

We start leather class in 1 1/2 weeks!