Learning Module IN: Indigenous Creative Crafts

RIZWOODS COLLEGES
CABREROS ST. BASAK SAN NICOLAS, CEBU CITY

Tel No. (032) 383-6586
LEARNING MODULE
IN
INDIGENOUS
CREATIVE CRAFTS
ELECTIVE 3
MODULE 4 & 5
COLLEGE
PREPARED BY:
VERONICCA GARCIA, LPT
VISION, MISSION GOALS, AND OBJECTIVES
VISION
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Center of excellence with standard training and education for global
competitiveness.
MISSION
Rizwoods Colleges, as a private non-sectarian, co-education institution shall enhance the
quality of teaching through relevant programs geared towards excellence for global
competitiveness.
GOALS
Promote scientific knowledge, skills and professional competence for leadership role. Provide
access to education opportunities with Rizwoods Colleges human resources development program.
Strengthens Rizwoods Colleges community service through outreach programs. Contribute to the
attainment of national development goals through active participation in socio-economic livelihood
programs of the government.
OBJECTIVES
Equip our students with scientific knowledge, skills and professional competence for
employment, business and leadership roles.
CORE VALUES
R- We acknowledge student’s RIGHTS and Responsibilities.
I- We believe that INNOVATION is the key to our school’s adaptability and sustainability.
Z- There is ZEST in implementing school rules and regulations.
W- We aim for WORTHY graduates.
O- We include the virtue of OBEDIENCE to our students.
O- We aim ORDERLINESS in our school atmosphere and facilities.
D- We give total DEDICATION to our work.
S- We aim SATISFACTION for our Students.
INDIGENOUS CREATIVE CRAFTS

TRADITIONAL FOLK ARTS
BASKETRY
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History
In the late 1800s, the basketry of Native Americans became popular as decorative objects with
the disadvantage that there were fewer Indian craftspeople remaining to meet the demand. In 1898,
after the Spanish American War, the Philippines, which also had a strong basket-making tradition,
were governed by the United States. Rural dwellers grew their own basket-making materials and
manufactured baskets for sale in the cities. The mutual need for baskets in the United States and the
strengthening of the economy of the Philippines caused schools with classes in basket weaving to be
established. The only books on the subject were about the baskets made by Native Americans, so
the schools taught traditional Indian basketry to the Filipinos. Eventually, native Filipino weavers
became the teachers as well, and both broad ranges of styles found a new homeland for
manufacture and a ready market in the United States. The Philippine Islands remain a major basket-
making center today. Basket weaving has never been found suitable to mechanization, but
standardization of hand methods and concentrated production centers and facilities produce uniform,
high-quality products.
Raw Materials
Raw materials include a wide range of plant fibers including roots, cane, twigs, and grasses;
reeds, raffia, and basket willows may be the best known. Concentrated cloth dyes are also used in
some types of manufacture, and vegetable dyes are sometimes made by hobbyists to reproduce
unique colorations imitating historic baskets. Wood is also used for some designs, particularly when
the type of basket needs a solid bottom and for some types of handles. Other than raw materials, the
basket maker needs tools like saws, awls, planes, knives, and beaters for hammering or bending
pieces of willow. A tub is required for soaking fibers. If coiled baskets are to be made, sewing tools
like blunt tapestry needles and thread are required. The manufacturer also needs patterns or
designs. For the hobbyist, many of these items can be purchased in basket-making kits.
Historically, most Native American baskets have been made with willow (which is, in fact, the
most popular basket-making material worldwide), twigs, and native grasses. Raffia and rattan have
been substituted for these, with raffia taking the place of the grasses and rattan substituting for the
more rigid fibers. Raffia is the fiber of the raffia palm, which is native to Southeast Asia. It produces
durable, clean strands and can easily be dyed. Rattan is also a tropical palm; its leaves and stems
are used in basket making, and it is often called reed or wicker. Rattan does not accept dye as well,
and its fibers are hard to work. Usually, it is soaked and woven while the fibers are still damp.
Design
Every basket has a character that is largely determined by the kind of fiber used to make it.
Design, therefore, may depend on the available fibers, or, conversely, to produce a particular design,
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appropriate fibers need to be purchased or found. Fibers are round, flexible, or flat. Round rods are
usually woven among other round rods. Similarly, flat strips can be woven together or twisted around
stiff rods. Grasses, crushed stems, or other flexible fibers are wrapped around each other to form a
coil then the coil is stitched to itself in a rising spiral to form the basket sides. The designer, therefore,
has determined what fibers are available and plans the basket accordingly.
Designs can be based on existing baskets, photos of historic types, a particular purpose or
use for the basket, or a size and shape required for
practical uses or desired for decorative ones. Another
aspect of design is any pattern or coloration that may
be worked into the shape of the basket. Again,
materials, their natural colors, and their susceptibility
to dyeing need to be considered.
The Manufacturing Process
Many baskets are made in very standard shapes
and sizes, some unique to various parts of the world,
and they look so much alike that they could have
come from machines. They are indeed mass-
produced objects but made by hand.
1. The process begins by choosing a design or
standard pattern including shape and size. Materials
are also gathered or purchased, and the necessary
tools for working those materials are assembled. If
the fibers are such that they need to be soaked, then
soaking is done in advance of basket making,
depending on the nature of the fiber. Fibers are also
dyed in advance of weaving or coiling.
2. If the design calls for a wood base, the base is shaped,
and holes are bored in the wood to accommodate the
spokes forming the sides of the basket.
3. A basket is built from the ground up. Its base or bottom is made first. For a round basket with a flat
bottom (as an example of any of hundreds of types of baskets that may be manufactured), the base is
made by laying out a series of spokes that are stiff and work like rods to support more flexible woven
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material. Other rods called weavers are woven in and out among the spokes; the weavers are lighter,
thinner, and more flexible, so that they can be woven and so they won't be strong enough to distort
the spokes.
4. The sides of this kind of basket can be formed in either of two ways. Initially, the spokes for the
base can be cut to be long enough to form the sides as well. When the base is finished, the spokes
are soaked to soften them, squeezed with pliers at the perimeter of the base, and then bent up to
form the sides.
5. The sides are also formed by cutting side spokes and weaving them down through the base
perimeter fibers and then up again so they form side spokes. Side spokes are essential if the base
spokes are large. The sides are then woven with flexible weavers that are passed over and under the
side spokes. Again, these weavers need to be smaller than the material forming the spokes so the
spokes are not distorted. The side spokes are longer than the finished basket is tall; the remaining
ends of the spokes are used to finish the top edge of the basket with a border. The spoke ends need
to be soaked before the border can be made so the spokes can more easily be woven in and out of
each other and the ends turned down into the basket sides.
6. The handle of the basket is chosen of the best available reed to be strong, durable, attractive, and
relatively smooth to the touch so it can be held. The ends of the handle reeds are soaked in water
and threaded down into the sides of the basket. The over-lap has to be long enough to prevent the
handle from pulling out of the sides when the basket is filled and used.
7. If the basket has a lid, the lid is made in the same manner as the base, but the rods and weavers
should be of the same sizes as those in the sides of the basket to match the appearance of the
basket.
Basketry Techniques & Materials
Philippines baskets are constructed from bamboo and rattan and often a combination of the
two.
Plaiting and twining produces a wide range of sizes and forms. Filipinos use baskets for
transportation and farm work, food service and storage, fishing and trapping, clothing, and to carry
personal items.
Storage
Household items are secured in baskets. Clothing and blankets
are kept fresh and dry in lidded containers. A tampipi is a common
basket type for storing clothing and blankets.
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Food Gathering & Preparation
Winnowing trays are used to separate rice from its hull. Serving
trays present rice and other foods for consumption. The baskets
shown here are from the Bontoc Igorot people of the mountain area of
Luzon Island.
Fish traps are placed in swift flowing streams and simpler baskets are used to carry crops from
the field to home or market.
Personal Baskets
Bontoc men carry tobacco and other
personal belongings in small bags shaped to fit
beneath the arm (upper). Often compartmentalized,
these bags include a "secret" compartment where
valuables can be stored. Meals are transported in
tightly-woven lunchboxes
called topil. Jewelry and other personal items are stored in small,
covered baskets of subtle design.
Transportation
Unique to northern Luzon Island is the inabuntan or hunter's
pack. It is constructed to be rain-resistant, providing a dry storage
space for hunting gear and game.
Hats
Bamboo and rattan hats vary in shape, size, and design, but all
function to protect the wearer from sun and rain.
CARVING
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Philippine Wood Carving and Its Exporting Potential
Wood Carving has fascinated a lot of people and Filipinos have been influenced by different
cultures that make our woodcraft unique. Different styles and different tastes from our native heritage
and culture that make us who we are today.
The Philippines has been known for a lot of things, but woodcraft is something we are naturally
good at. From the northern part of the country down to the south, there is always a wood carving or
sculpting province that will amaze us.
Wood carving in the Philippines is a tradition dating back to pre-colonial times. Native Filipinos
carved boats, plows, arrows, spears, and other essential items, often creating ornamental patterns for
the use of the tribal hierarchy and to celebrate special occasions. In early times, figurines such as the
“Tanod” were carved as totems to protect villages and ward off evil.
Mehitabel celebrates this wood carving tradition in many of its designs. Our items are hand-
carved, and explore Oriental, French, English, Spanish and Native motifs influences.
Wood carving capital of the Philippines
Paete, Laguna is really proud about their wood carvings. Paete, whose name was derived
after a chisel or paet, is a small town on the northeastern part of Laguna. It is famous for its sweet
lanzones and its finely made woodcraft that it was declared the Carving Capital of the Philippines on
March 15, 2005. They are simply amazing at it. From making statues, sculptures, furniture to other
things that you can name of that can be made of wood. As if they treat this skill as they’re hobby or
past time by creating different images and statues out of wood. Most of the woodcarvers in Paete are
third generation woodworking folks, this skill is still being passed on to the next generation of
woodcarvers.
Exporting state and its potential
While most of these woodcarvings will be distributed locally, some of these handmade
products are being exported internationally.
Paete’s local economy relies mainly on its
handicrafts and sculptures, they had also suffered from
foreign interventions that brought in new technologies
and mass produced their people’s works. An example
was when Paete’s expertise in papier-mache was
adopted by the Chinese, which eventually made their
country the top supplier of papier-mache crafts in the
world. Although, Paete artistry and tradition can never be
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commercially produced for a mass market, artistry and uniqueness will also be the edge of their
products that can create high-value pieces.
In other places in the country, some use a more Filipino trait of design by using sawali and
bamboo. Although some designs show a European influence, you can still tell that it is a Filipino
made product because of the bamboo material used. It is also seen as the savior of the wood carving
industry in the Philippines not just because of the low cost of the raw material but also the curiosity
and interest of foreign buyers.
The Woodcarvers of the Philippines
The Spanish conquistador Miguel Lopez de Legaspi called the Filipinos “buen ebanistas” after
seeing the woodwork produced by the natives. Filipinos had been engaging in the art of woodcarving
long before the arrival of the Spaniards. The craft is more than 2000 years old — dating back to the
time when carvers had to make use of stones, shells and even the teeth and tusks of animals to
shape the wood. Today, Filipino woodcarvers continue to carve a name in the ranks of the finest in
the craft.
The more popular Filipino woodcarvers are the Ifugaos, the Tagbanwas, the Maranaos and
the Paetenos.
Ifugao Woodcarvers
The Ifugaos of Northern Luzon are famous for the way they carved the mountain slopes that
form the legendary Banaue rice terraces. They are also well known for their mastery of wood carving.
Ifugao woodcarvings are usually of their deities, the most famous of which are the various
interpretations of the granary deity known as the bul-ul. This granary deity occupies a significant role
in the lives of the Ifugaos and the bul-ul is ever present in the rice granaries, usually accompanied by
a female idol to assure an abundant harvest.
With the current ban on hardwoods, Filipino woodcarvers now use ipil or acacia. Ifugaos also
use the reddish wood called gutmu. The wood is roughly shaped with a bolo — a one-edged knife
about 12 to 18 inches long. In working out the details, an improvised thin gouge 2 to 6 inches long is
used and then the carving is polished with the leaves of the aplah plant. After this, the images are
blackened with soot. Through time, the wood acquires a fine, hard gloss.
Tagbanwa Woodcarvers
South of the Phjlippines, one finds the Tagbanwa woodcarvers. Whereas the Ifugaos engage
in woodcarving primarily because it is an essential part of their beliefs and customs, the Tagbanwas
of Palawan carve for the sheer fun of it. And this is probably why the Tagabanwa woodcarvings stand
out as one of the most exciting of indigenous Philippine woodcarvings. These wooden works of art
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are highly stylized and reflect sophisticated aesthetics, leading one art critic to say that they have
“close affinities to near-abstract art.”
Tagbanwa wood carving is unique because it incorporates a technique of completely
blackening the surface of the wood and then bringing out white portions while etching the design.
Only a few of the Tagbanwa woodcarvings are intended for use in rituals. Most of them serve as toys
for the children, décor for the house, or as a means of self-expression.
The Tagbanwa’s favorite wood comes from the alimutyugani tree. After the bark is removed,
the wood is shaped. Then the wood is rubbed with the leaves of the cassava plant until it turns green.
Lumps of resin called salung are placed on the ground and ignited and the wood is passed over the
smoke until it becomes black with soot. The process of rubbing cassava leaves all over the wood and
blackening the carving by passing it over the burning resin is repeated until the black coloring does
not rub off. Then the designs are etched out using a very small knive called pisaw. These designs are
usually polka dots, v-marks and white triangles which, when carved on the blackened wood, come
out was white incisions.
Maranao Woodcarvers
Further down south of the Philippine Islands, are the Maranoa Muslim woodcarvers. Figural
representations in their craft are taboo to the Maranao woodcarvers. Natural forms are allowed only
on the condition that they are “de-natured.” Because of this limitation, the Maranao woodcarvers use
the okkil motif in most of their works. The okkil motif is rich in Sassanian character — the flowing
floral forms and S movements. The Filipino Muslim adaptation of the okkil has a strong indigenous
character, deriving inspiration from local plants, sea corals and native objects.
The okkil is carved into musical instruments and everyday objects such as kitchen wares and
bamboo tubes. The design can also be seen in the wooden handles of swords and knives. Aside
from the okkil, the sarimanok — a stylized representation of a bird or rooster is also one of the more
popular Maranao woodcarving designs.
Woodcarvers of Paete
In Luzon — the biggest of the three major Philippine islands — the town of Paete in Laguna
has been known as the center of woodcarving in the Philippines. The ban on logging has led many
woodcarvers to switch to paper mache, but today, Paete continues to be one of the best sources of
fine woodcarvings. In this town, woodcarving has been elevated to a fine art form which is no wonder,
because the name Paete comes from the word paet, which literally means chisel.
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RIZWOODS COLLEGES

CABREROS ST. BASAK SAN NICOLAS, CEBU CITY

VISION, MISSION GOALS, AND OBJECTIVES

INDIGENOUS CREATIVE CRAFTS

covered baskets of subtle design.

Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

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