RANGOON — An elegant spread of Burma’s traditional handicrafts and textiles is on view this week at the River Ayeyarwaddy Gallery in Rangoon.
“Made in Myanmar,” the second installation of a new annual exhibit, will showcase the works of 13 social enterprises from Dec. 13-19.
Organized by Sunflower Group, a collective of organizations promoting sustainable and traditional livelihoods, the show will offer a range of finely crafted shawls, tapestries, garments, soaps and other natural products from several parts of the country.
Custom knitwear produced by Kachin women displaced by conflict will be available for purchase, with proceeds channeled directly back to isolated camps in northern Burma.
Other products, including handmade soaps and accessories, are sourced from government-operated vocational schools in Amarapura, Rangoon and Taunggyi, where young students are learning how to generate income while preserving Burma’s fine-quality traditional arts and crafts.
Ei Ei Phyo, a 23-year-old alumnus of a weaving school in Taunggyi, said she makes about five shawls per day, bringing in about US$80 each month. Just one year of training gave her top-tier skills in hand-weaving, machine-weaving and natural dye production.
Handsome merchandise isn’t the only thing on offer this week at River Ayeyarwaddy. Visitors are welcome to observe demonstrations of natural dying methods, watching cloth masters transform mango, almond and other raw materials into gorgeous color palettes. Traditional weaving techniques will also be showcased.
The premier “Made in Myanmar” exhibit was held in April 2013, to great success. Sunflower Group has also organized five other shows of Burma’s textiles and crafts in Tokyo, Japan.
