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Artisan Stories
| RUGS FROM PAKISTAN
An Artisan's View of Attaining Peace
Liaqat, a village supervisor, lives in the village of Lengha, Pakistan and began working for Bunyaad eighteen years ago. The economy of Liaqat's village is struggling because of its proximity to the Indian border. The possibility of unrest deters businesses from locating there. Working for Bunyaad has enabled Liaqat to give his four daughters an education through high school. Liaqat expresses how education holds the key to peace in Pakistan.
"All the children should be educated. Once they are educated, I don't care if they become farmers or employees or start their own businesses, but they need to have an education. An educated person won't get into disputes, won't start arguing about anything….(with) a lack of education you don't know how to communicate and a lot of misunderstanding goes on," said Liaqat. "With education, a person knows right from wrong... Education is like jewelry, you wear it and it transforms you as a person." |
 Darianwala Girls School educates
more than
650 students in grades K-12
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CERAMICS FROM VIETNAM
Craft Link, a non-profit organization, works to assist small Vietnamese craft producers find market opportunities and to promote awareness of ethnic minority crafts and culture. Craft Link also provides marketing, design, and management advice to other disadvantaged groups, like street children and people with disabilities.
Craft Link is committed to the principles of fair trade, investing in artisans’ social welfare and guaranteeing fair wages, worker safety, and care of the environment.
Working closely with the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi, Craft Link helps preserve traditional craft skills like the weaving and embroidery of the tribal groups, puppet making, and traditional ceramics. Craft Link’s ceramics come from Bat Trang, a small village on the Red River, which has been famous for its ceramics since the 15th century. |
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MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
FROM CAMEROON
More than 200 craftspeople work full-time with Prescraft - the
Presbyterian Handicraft Centre in Cameroon - which was started in
the 1960s to provide much-needed employment to local people. Their
indigenous instruments include gongs, rattles, whistles, flutes and
drums created from natural materials such as dried calabash gourds
and seeds. Purchase of instruments from Cameroon links North
Americans with the talented artisans and centuries-old musical
traditions of West Africa and completes the circle of fair trade. |
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WOVEN PRODUCTS FROM GUATEMALA
UPAVIM is a self-governing community of poor women and children
located in La Esperanza near Guatemala City. The community began as
a squatters settlement. By working together and producing beautiful
craft items for sale around the world, as well as through grants and
donations, the group has established a medical and dental clinic, a
medical lab, a children's center, and a Montessori school. Purchase
of these beautiful handmade craft items helps provide much needed
income and crucial financial support for UPAVIM's various programs. |
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CUT METAL WORK FROM HAITI
Jhonson Augustin, a cut metal artisan in Croix des Bouquets, Haiti, was still in school when he started learning the art of metal work. The eldest of 11 children, whose father had left Haiti, Augustin felt a great deal of responsibility.
Augustin has become a well-known cut metal artisan in his own right, now training other young apprentices. The young people start with the “rough” work of cutting open the metal drums used as raw material, and sanding and varnishing the finished products. Gradually they move on to tasks requiring more skill.
“Even apprentices can make enough to go to school, or to care for their children if they are parents,” he said. Currently Augustin’s workshop supports some 50 families. Of himself Augustin said, “This is what God gave me to live; I support my family, I am building a house and I am providing work for others.”
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OLIVE WOOD PRODUCTS
FROM WEST BANK
Raja Bannoura Workshop, based in Beit Sahour, a village on the east side of Bethlehem, produces hand-carved olive wood products. Bannoura coordinates orders for many olive wood carvers and workshops in Beit Sahour. He collects pruned olive branches and wood, stacks them in his yard, and dries them for six to nine months before cutting the wood for use. Laminating many small rectangular pieces together makes the larger flat pieces for nativities. Using small pieces of wood ensures that olive trees are not cut down for carving purposes.
- Raja Bannoura Workshop was established in 1974.
- The workshop provides employment for 20 artisans working in two locations.
- The olive wood is supplied primarily from olive tree pruning.
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