Clothing with culturally loaded symbols of the rainbow bridge, diamond shapes and bean-shaped dots were put on exhibition by the Taroko Gorge National Park’s Buluowan administrative office at a traditional handicrafts exposition on Friday to symbolize an injection of fresh blood in the Truku people’s waning traditional weaving arts.
Traditional methods of weaving are time-consuming processes and are physically very demanding, often causing twitches as well as back pain, Wu Ma-li (吳瑪琍) of the Truku people said, adding that for these reasons many youths are unwilling to learn the craft.
“Retired women comprise the majority of those who are learning how to weave,” she said, adding that, “if our handicrafts with their long history suffer a gap in succession, it would be a cultural disaster for all of our people.”
Speaking of her craft, Wu said that everything seemed difficult in the beginning.
Wrapping threads around a warping frame is an important first step, as the weaver must arrange the threads in the position they want their final product to turn out, Wu said, adding that next the weaver has to focus on texture so that all of the threads end up in their correct place.
Weaving the shape of totems on any given cloth product is the most challenging process, as it not only requires a mental image of the shape beforehand, but also positioning, the number of shapes and the size, Wu said.
Properly aligning the warp and weft of threads, as well as slices of bamboo used for battening, are also important techniques for a weaver to realize their vision, Wu said.
While some of the older artisans use threads made from ramie and dyed with grass roots and other plants such as cassava, most weavers use cotton or a mixture of cotton and linen, Wu said, adding that the choice of cotton makes it possible to skip steps, such as skinning the linen and twining the products into thread.
One piece of cloth 1m long and 50cm wide is made from about 600 strands of cotton and, when observing traditional methods, would require one-and-a-half months to weave, Wu said, adding that two such pieces could be made into either a vest or a skirt, while three could form a blanket.
Weaving pieces of cloth provides flexibility in what the product will become, as it would depend on the intended use of the product, Wu said.
Those just starting to learn the craft would take about half a year to finish one segment of cloth, she said, adding that the complexity of shapes chosen also affects the time to complete the work.
Elderly weavers tend to use plain weave methods and only stitch on patterns that symbolize blessings during ceremonies or grand events, Wu said.
According to Wu, bean-shaped dots symbolize wishes for a bountiful harvest, while road-like and stair-like patterns or rainbows symbolize paths for posterity, so that people would not lose their way.
“The diamond-shaped patterns are the eyes of the ancestors and symbolize that the ancestors are watching over their descendants,” Wu said. “Patterns of a boar’s tusks are reserved for the tribe’s warriors who have demonstrated great bravery.”
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