Mat Weaving In The Pacific

Those ceremonies provide a focus for the practicing of traditional crafts such as the manufacture of masi or tapa cloth made from the bark.
Mat weaving in the pacific. All the states continue to use traditional skills for tasks such as building weaving rope making and for handicrafts. In its first iteration it consists of 500 entries from 50 countries nominated by the country editors and coordinated by the sub regional vice presidents. Fiji fiji cultural life. The motif of weaving mats features strongly in this collection.
Mat types uses kuta well known in vanua levu mostly bua uses. Leave a reply cancel reply. Weaving is social event a time for the women to get together. One well known fijian mat is the kuta made by women in vanua levu particularly bua.
Samoan fine mats are prized traditional mats used not for sitting upon but for keepsakes to exchange during special occasions ceremonies. The process of creating my mat quickly mesmerized me and thank goodness the aim of my efforts was just a place mat. I have about twenty mats now so we share them with relatives and friends. It was about the art of mat making.
Many features of traditional fijian life survive. Most mats are bordered with highly decorative and brightly coloured wool. What s special about cultural heritage in the south pacific. Scenes from spbd clients weaving businesses.
Traditional arts and crafts remain in use throughout the islands including woven pandanus mats fans and baskets and woodcarving is still widely practiced. The fiji times online recently ran an article written by sikeli qounadovu titled passing on a dying art that i found interesting and would like to summarize for you. In the polynesian parts of the pacific these symbolic gifts express an exchange of respect appreciation and community. Gifts formal occasions weddings objectives.
There s always some one in the village cutting voivoi pandanus or kuta reeds and going through the tedious process of trimming boiling rolling and eventually weaving the. The encyclopedia of crafts in wcc asia pacific region is a flagship project of the world crafts council asia pacific region. Mats are often exchanged as gifts in formal ceremonies such as at funerals and conferences. Fiji s mixed ethnicity contributes to a rich cultural heritage.
The mat is flipped over and back each time so the leaf is locked into place. We became the center of attention and soon the children and young girls were gathered around to watch the progress. They are most evident in the elaborate investiture marriage and other ceremonies for high ranking chiefs.