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CONTENTS 2 Editorial 3 A Word From the Sarawak Craft Council 4 Great Expectations 6 Guess Who Came to the Rainforest World Crafts Bazaar? 8 Before The Loom 10 Silver Crafts 14 Miku, The Man of Many Trades 15 What’s On Editorial INTERNATIONAL LINKS The Rainforest World Crafts Bazaar, held from July 9–15, was a lot of fun for all concerned – hard work, too! By now the pavilions have been dismantled, the participants have gone home to their own villages, towns or countries, and we can consider the impact this Bazaar has made on the local handicrafts scene. During the hectic run-up to the RWCB a few people did ask: “So much fuss and trouble – what for? Will this do any good to our own craftspeople?” The answer is, “Yes. International exposure is doing good to our own craftspeople.” Normally, if we want foreigners to see our crafts we have to take them, or at least their goods, to Japan, to the UK, to Australia, to Singapore, to India. During a huge event like the Rainforest World Music Festival, the foreigners come to us. The ladies from Baram showcased and sold their beadwork to customers from 50-odd countries. If that’s not ‘exposure’, what is? The international craftspeople who took part in the RWCB did more than just browse and shop among Sarawak’s wide offering of crafts. They sketched, photographed, studied, compared, asked questions. The felt-workers from Kyrgyzstan were particularly interested in our bark cloth; felt and bark have some similarities in a world of mainly loom-woven textiles. The Japanese graphic artist who created those comic-book dolls took a good look at Sarawak’s traditional designs. In return, are any of our craftspeople going to venture into making dolls? Not necessarily space-age grotesques, just a line of well-designed dolls in local costumes? That was one of the purposes of our Bazaar – to show to our craftspeople what else, over and above what they’ve always produced, they should try their hand at. The sellers of bead necklaces and bracelets were asked for anklets, again and again. So here’s the message: create a well-made, appealing line of anklets for the next RWCB (all sizes, from S to XL!). The purpose of a bazaar is to sell goods, and judging by the feedback sales were satisfactory. Some lines sold out (beadwork items, and headgear), others were less successful. Craftspeople and vendors will know next time which are the most ‘laku’ items, and bring more of them. Another purpose of a bazaar is to make contacts. At least one prominent local bamboo grower was seen deep in conference with the bamboo-instrument makers from Bandung, hopefully leading to one line of crafts cooperation with our southern neighbour. An Australian distributor of hand-made household and gift wares got in touch a few days after the bazaar had closed. A long-term RWMF fan, he stumbled upon the RWCB almost by chance, but now he’s seen the show he is hoping to make a trade connection. CRAFTS is published by Crafthub Sdn Bhd for the Sarawak Crafts Council (SCC). Contact on a more official level was made by the SCC. The Opinions expressed by contributors to CRAFTS are not necessarily those of the SCC contingent of artisans and vendors who occupied the impressive or Crafthub. The contents of CRAFTS may not be reproduced in any medium without prior Pavilion Indonesia included a number of officials from the written permission. Indonesian Crafts Council. These experienced and efficient crafts Feedback is welcome, write to us at [email protected]. administrators were delighted to meet Datuk Gramong, chairman of the SCC, and members of his staff. This is how networks are Editor: Heidi Munan Publication Managers: Donald Tan and Freya Martin created, by knotting a few strands at a time. Contributors: Reynold Ahviet, Lucy Ang-Abey, Margaret Apau, Dr Thomas Chung Printed at the Bahagia Press Sdn Bhd, Lot 225 Section 49, Jln Padungan Utara, 93100 Kuching. The RWCB has made a modest start, networking, showcasing, Published by Crafthub Sdn Bhd, 1st Floor 96 Main Bazaar, 93000 Kuching. exposing Sarawak to the world and the world to Sarawak. The cover photo, showing Datuk Amar Laila Taib and Datuk Gramong Juna officially opening the RWCB, was taken by S K Suchen, the Sarawak Tourism Board official photographer. 02 A word from... The Sarawak Craft Council by Reynold Ahviet As we move into October, the Sarawak Craft Council looks back with pride at the first Rainforest Worlds Crafts Bazaar held at The Rainforest World Music Festival in July, which the Council organised in conjunction with Sarawak Tourism Board – you can read more about the success of the Bazaar in this issue. But work didn’t stop there – the team were also actively promoting crafts in KL, Kuching and Kanowit as well as Pahang throughout August. In early August, the Kanowit. Stalls were selling everything from crafts to fashion SCC team worked accessories, clothing, homemade DIY tapestries, books and with SEDC at the tantalizing local food delicacies, but from our observation the Sarawak Tourism hottest items were the bead necklaces! There were also watersports and Leisure Group including longboat and power boat racing, which made the whole 2008 Products event even more exciting! Update in Kuala Lumpur, held at the Federal Hotel. Pn Rosemary Jagak was on hand to demonstrate bemban weaving to potential clients in line with SEDC’s effort to promote Sarawak as an ideal travel destination, both for leisure and for business. In conjunction with Merdeka month, quite a number of events were held at Kuching Waterfront and, in particular, the Promosi Kraftangan Malaysia 2008 from 1–10 August at which SCC was invited to showcase local arts and YB Datuk Gramong Juna at Pesta Kanowit crafts. There were also participants from West Malaysia and Sabah and a total of about 77 stalls. To Members of the team then travelled to Pahang at the invitation make it livelier, there were also of the Sarawak Tourism Board to showcase arts and crafts at the local singers, cultural dances and Sarawak Food and Cultural Promotion held from 18–31 August musical performances so that at Resort Hotel Genting. SCC officer Ms Ester Luat accompanied everybody could enjoy the show. Mdm Racha Salem, who was selected to demonstrate bemban weaving. Three chefs from one famous hotel in Kuching also came The SCC were then in Kanowit from 16–23 August for the Pesta to create speciality dishes. Kanowit 2008 organised by Kanowit District Council and launched by YB Datuk Gramong Juna. For the festival, SCC brought along These recent events gave Malaysians and foreign visitors alike the local craftspeople to promote their crafts, for example, Mr Malang chance to experience Sarawak with all their senses – including Jabu and his woodcarving and Mdm Aini binti Sawat. The SCC taste! booths attracted both local residents and visitors from outside The Sarawak Craft Council The SCC promotes the State’s ethnic handicrafts, both to preserve a priceless artistic heritage and to improve the artisans’ livelihood. The predominantly rural craftworkers now have a realistic option to augment their income from agriculture. The Craft Council coordinates the activities of government and private entities involved in handicraft development in Sarawak. Mission Statement The Sarawak Craft Council provides leadership in the development and enhancement of the handicaft industry in Sarawak. Objective To develop the handicraft industry into a more coordinated and progressive enterprise that will complement the needs of the tourism industry. 03 by Margaret Apau Embracing the traditional arts and crafts, the addition of the Rainforest World Crafts Bazaar to this year’s Rainforest World Music Festival is almost like slotting in the missing piece of a well- loved jigsaw puzzle, adding dimension and enrichment to this already well-rounded event. Host to a diversity of professional craftsmen from all over the world -– from Sabah to Indonesia, Korea to Kyrgyzstan – the Bazaar was a gathering of craftspeople eager to share and learn about each other’s crafts without the industrial feel of a trade fair. A friendly forum for the professional craftsperson, the Bazaar was also a living expo of arts and crafts for the ordinary festival-goer, elevating our pre-defined views of crafts and the crafts industry to an art form that remains relevant in our modern lifestyles. Taking a walk through the Bazaar was very much like walking through Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. A departure from the typical avenue of souvenir stalls selling tourist trinkets, the Bazaar showcased a diversity of handicrafts that makes our cultures so unique – from woolly felt rings from Kyrgyzstan to wooden combs from Korea – crafts also remind us of how much alike we are. My impromptu guide was Jacqueline Vera Peter, a representative from the Sabahan Kadaiku, as eager as I was to explore the other crafts at the Bazaar. She was quick to point out the similarities and the differences between Sabahan crafts and the others, the most similar of which are the textiles and the baskets. One type of fabric amongst the Indonesian stalls caught her eye – thick, handwoven, candy-striped and vibrant. She struck up a conversation with the Indonesian booth-holder, and they shared a friendly debate over the fabric’s name and origins. To him, it’s kain lurik, of Javanese origin, but to her, it’s kain jali jali, woven by the Iranun women of Sabah. The basket is another simple example of our cultural congruence. Made of pandan leaves or stiff reeds, it is an object universally used before the advent of the modern day backpack.