Author: Amanda

Day 8: Works of Art

August 10, 2016

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

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

August 9, 2016

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

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 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

August 8, 2016

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.

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

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

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

August 5, 2016

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

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!

Day 4: Santa Fe Recap

August 4, 2016

In the past several days I’ve spoken a lot about the International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe, yet I haven’t yet posted a formal recap on this blog. Today is that recap!

The Folk Art Market was an incredible experience, both at an organizational level and in regards to the potential for the women’s reach. I was accompanied by two volunteers, Vrnda, who is a member of our Board, and Micah, who is a close friend and long time supporter of Ruraq Maki.

New friends at the workshops

I arrived in Santa Fe on Tuesday and attended a mandatory first-time artisan training on Wednesday, which focused on the the logistics of the market, tips for selling products, and networking with other artisans. On Thursday I attended an optional training that was sponsored by the knowledgable folks at By Hand Consulting. I participated in the track that focused on selling to a wholesale market, including exploring different types of markets, wholesale cost structures, and financial planning for wholesale relationships. Both days of training were extremely helpful for our long-term planning and will enable us to build strong wholesale relationships.

Vrnda and Micah after a long day of set up

On Friday, Micah, Vrnda, and I spent the day setting up our booth and tagging our products. We also got to know our booth mates, Magdalena (joined by her husband Raul), who is a master sculptor from Oaxaca. Friday night was the first night of the market and is for people who are art collectors and enthusiasts (the entrance fee on Friday is $225). For us, Friday night was not our market, as our products are more for the general public, however, it was amazing to walk through the market and view the work of over 160 artisans from about the world.

Our booth mates, Magdalenda and Raul

Saturday and Sunday the market is more accessible for the general public and our sales picked up. These days were a great learning experience for us because we learned more about the customers at the market and what they are looking for. Most notably, we learned the ideal price points for products and what types of products people prefer. For us, that meant bags! We sold a lot of bags, sold out of one color of our bags, and almost sold out of one style! This information is valuable because it enables us to focus our efforts and resources on our best selling items.

Our manta display

Overall, our sales were less than we had hoped for but the most we have ever had in one event, by far. More valuable than money, though, is what we learned from the fair, which could otherwise have taken years to figure out.

Also, there were other valuable non-monetary benefits from the event! One was the workshops. Another was that Ruraq Maki was selected by the Folk Art Alliance to be interviewed on film and receive a professional copy of the interview. This video is a gift to us that we can use for anything we choose. For us, this is a tremendous gift, as non-profit videos often cost upwards of $1,000 to produce, and we can utilize this video to help us sell the women’s products.

Being interviewed for a video!

Another benefit of the event is that we did connect with wholesale buyers, some of whom purchased samples of our products. For us, this is the start of building wholesale relationships which can propel the women’s work to the next level.
Finally, the most invaluable part of the event was meeting the other artisans and seeing their masterful art. The International Folk Art Market truly is an international community and we were so honored to be apart of it.