Raizes work with Minas Gerais’ communities, especially with the North area and Jequitinhona and Mucuri Valleys, because in these places we found a lot of craftspeople with a huge distribution problem for their products. Here you can learn more about these traditional communities.
Arteluz | AAA – Associação de Artesão de Araçuaí | AIA – Associação Itaobiense de Artesanato | AACJ – Associação Artesanal e Cultural do Jequitinhonha | Associação dos Artesão de Campo Buriti e Coqueiro Campo | Associação dos Artesãos e Lavradores de Campo Alegre | Associação dos Artesão de Santana do Araçuaí | Associação dos Artesãos de Minas Novas | Cooperativa Dedo de Gente | Mullheres Criativas | Assoarte | Divinart | Alquimia da Arte | AAB – Associação dos Artesão s de Botumirim | Associação Graomogolense de Artesanato | 100% Cidadania
In Itaobim (Jequitinhonha Valley) there is a bucolic community called Estação da Luz. There live women that a few years ago dedicated their craft braiding the cattail fiber to produce mats. However, with the devaluation of this market, the group was advised by Project ARTESOL, an NGO that helps communities from all over Brazil to have a sustainable development, to start to braid boxes with cattail fiber instead of mats, because the value and the market acceptance of this new product would be superior. As a result, these women organized themselves and create ARTELUZ Association that nowadays counts with 18 artisans. Although the production achieves a better quality, their handcraft commerce continued to be sparse and irregular. During a visit on Gracinha’s home, one of the leaders of the group, we found out that in some periods they spend months without selling one product. This scenario, force these women to work in rural areas to cover the families’ minimum expenses. When we spoke with Mira, president of ARTELUZ, she told us about her dream: “I want to have many orders to have a lot of work”. Other person who is important to present in this community is Mrs. Maria Pretinha, a 105 years old artisan that is a symbol on the association for her experience, strength and persistence.
In Araçuai we found one of the biggest local associations with approximately 80 artisans. Some of them already have a national artistic recognition, like Lira, a famous artisan for her Araçuai’s masks, and Oriswaldo that craft sculptures of crucified peasants with wood. At the association’ store, even the less experienced artisans and children have the opportunity to show their art for the public. In the small space where the store is located, Elizângela, artisan and attendant in the store, confessed that everything they want is “spread our art, have recognition and material to work more and more”.
The main production of the artisans of AIA is an ornamental handcraft, happy and fun. The gourd dolls are their mark, with a lot of colors and variations they portray the stereotype of the peasants local population, women workers, beautiful mulatto dolls, among others. They also work with ceramic, especially dolls. The group of 25 associated have their own store, but they still cannot live only with the profits of their handcraft commercialization, for now it is just a dream that they want to make real.
When we went to Jequitinhonha Valley, we were received by Leonardo, a nice artisan who lives in the back of a handcraft store that works almost without stop every day. In the store, we could see the handcraft production and get to know a little bit more about the group history. AACJ is composed by approximately 60 artisans and count with traditional knowledge and techniques to produce their products. The main raw materials are clay and adobe, and the themes portrayed are linked to the daily life of people, like sculptures of the refugees, representing the community’s hard life. Other thing important to emphasize, is the religious aspect of this community, once they have a strong devotion to St. Francis of Assisi. Leonardo, known as Leo Pezão, told us that his dream is to sell more and more his own art and the handcraft of the others craftsmen, exposed in the store – among the artisans there are children who learn the traditional technique with Leo’s mom who is reference in the community and master of the art to transform clay on fine arts.
The Craftsmen Association of Buriti Camp and Coqueiro Camp won a wide shed to stock up the handcraft of 48 associated artisans in Turmalina – Minas Gerais. The most important economic activity in the region is eucalyptus’ cultivation. The families live from the work in small subsistence rural areas and the money earned by people who work all year on the sugarcane cultivation in Bahia and Sao Paulo. The handcraft is diversified and has many shapes with focus on kitchen utilities and ornaments, keeping the characteristic of burn clay with mosaic composition, flowers and images with their natural colors. The artisans told us that their biggest problem are the difficulties with the commercialization of their products and the fact that they cannot participate in regional fairs because they don’t have means to transport their handcraft. They also complain that sometimes they spend months without selling a product.
The association has 47 members who live from the handcraft and work in rural areas. Although the ceramics is a strong tradition and mark of this local community, many artisans cannot afford to live only with their handcraft. Everybody in the association dream to improve the quality of life through handcraft work, but they have a small demand for their products. Recently, a Solidarity Tourism Program was implemented in the community, preparing 3 families to receive visitors on their homes. It represents the huge potential that the people and the simple culture have to enchant a tourist. So, we will let you with an invitation to know Campo Alegre in person or their handcraft on our solidarity handcraft website.
Santana do Araçuaí, Jequitinhonha Valley, became known for its renowned artisan and artist Dona Izabel. From humble origins and a life story full of suffering, Dona Izabel managed to overcome the difficulties and show the world her talent. She has taught her technique to her children and to every community person interested in learning it. These apprentices brought together the Association of Craftsmen of Santana do Araçuaí. Today there are 38 craftsmen, who make not only ceramic dolls – for which they are famous, but also pots, miniatures and decorative pieces - mostly chickens and stoves.
The Craftsmen Association of Minas Novas has about 80 artists. Located in the Sobradão, the first building of 4 floors in Brazil, the association uses ceramics as its major technic. What differentiates this group from other potters in the Jequitinhonha Valley is the theme of the objects, which is focused on miniature houses, baskets of fruit and animals (especially the donkey), and is a ceramic plenty of colors. With distribution difficulties, the dream of this association is to have a truck to participate in fairs all over Brazil.
Dedo de Gente Cooperative emerged as an offshoot project of the program “Being Child” from CPCD (Popular Center of Culture and Development) designed by the important popular educator Tião Rocha. The project creates "small factories" to teach trades to young people in Curvelo and Araçuai. With 13 years of existence, the project has, at the moment, 17 young artisans in Araçuaí and about 40 in Curvelo. These artisans manufacture rustic furniture, iron sculptures, embroidery, adobe paintings, jams and liqueurs. The project undoubtedly transform lives! Talking with some teenagers of the project, we realize the way this work changed their own lives and for people surrounding them. It is a beautiful example that the art can create dignity and make the hope for a better future get stronger.
In Almenara, Jequitinhonha Valley, a group of women, instructed by Franciscans nuns, began to sew together to supplement the income of their families. Three years later a local artist decided to teach them the technique of mosaic with pieces of cloth, better known as patchwork. The group has increased and called themselves Creative Ladies of Almenara. Thenceforward, this creativity knew no bounds: quilts, purses, dolls, curtains, carpets, paintings…they create everything! The 33 creative ladies say they like what they do and dream about receiving recognition, so they can work more and more.
The Assoarte in Diamantina, brings together the work of 120 autonomous artisans that create designs and multiple formats for carpets and pictures in arraiolo. Asking about the origins of the technique, we found out that "in Diamantina those who are not gold miners, work as textile weavers”, popular saying that shows all the tradition present in this art. Vania, craftswoman who coordinates the group, dreams about having a shed for the artisans, a small day-care for the children and a truck for distribution. They seem big dreams, but nothing is impossible for people that turn wool into art and enchantment.
In Datas, a district near Diamantina, a group of 30 artisans, guided by Mr. Valmir Paulino, create representations of the Holy Spirit with wood of all shapes and sizes. Mr. Valmir was pioneer on this regional handcraft, creating the dove made by wood about 15 years ago to symbolize the Holy Spirit. His motivations were his faith and the search for spiritual support for his health problems. Nowadays, in the middle of Serra do Espinhaço, the local artisans use wood as raw material to produce diversified Holy Spirits, with their brand, Divinart.
The Craftsmen Association of Botumirin is really young, with only 2 years of existence, but already has a great story to tell. It started with the desire to improve the quality of life without have to look for better jobs in the big cities. Having it in mind, a small group learned the weaving technique from the eldest of the community. With the wise teachings, they started to produce many stuffs: quilting, placemats, pillows… Recently, a SEBRAE consultancy taught them essential techniques making use of local raw material as buriti fiber, present on their needlework. We can say that the region not only provides their raw material, but also inspires the craftsmen to produce their art: saints, work women, rural ditties, bushy flowers and others themes present on the day life of the community. They earned machines from the government and the space where they work from the township, because of their will and force to make things happen. With talent and persistence, there is no limit for the AAB artisans.
The Craftsmen Association of Grão Mogol, north of Minas, has currently 18 craftsmen, its own headquarters and a store downtown. The dream of these people is to be able to dedicate their work only in crafts what is not possible at the moment. The demand seasonality is their main problem, once they depend on tourism activity to sell – only in tree periods the commerce occur in a satisfactory way: Festivale, Val’s Party and Carnival. The inspiration comes from these artist’s history and daily life: they portray the stone houses (common in the city), the mining (strong presence in the history of the town) and the embroideries with local flora thema – cactus, evergreens and “canela-de-ema”. A material often used is “capim campestre” (field grass). Similar to the golden grass of the north of the country, the field grass only shines a little less and has a darker green. This material is used with great skill in the making of pots, baskets and vases.
Art Alchemy started with 7 artisans and nowadays counts with 3 partners to manage the business and 18 artisans, who make handcraft with cloth. Maria Elizia, one of the partners who create Art Alchemy company, works with Ipatinga suburb women, teaching them the crochet technique and providing the raw material needed. After that, she buys the crochet flowers and “fuxicos” (a typical Brazilian technique to make flowers with cloth) to make her craft.
100% Citizenship is located in Belo Horizonte metropolitan area, specialize in products reusing carpet from fairs. Artisans with a huge creativity make beautiful purses, carpets and sets of recycled material.
In the South part of Minas Gerais there are many artisans weaving products with loom, creating miniature oratories, Saints and Holy Spirits. Isabel Bahia and her husband Patrício’ work deserves a special highlight for their careful and detail craft with cattail.
In a small town named Soledade, a lot of artisans got together to braid cattail fiber. They produce boxes, hampers, purses, sousplats and every type of product with this material.
In Triangulo Mineiro (Mineiro Triangle) a craftsmen group, with the support of the town, in partnership with AMUR (Rural Ladies Association) produces a beautiful manual works, using as raw material recycled products and natural fibers. Nowadays, there are 180 people involved in this project.
In Pasmado district, located in Itaobim, a craftsmen independent group exposes their products on the side of the road in canvas tents. There are pans, wood spoons, flower vases and garden donkeys. The production is not made in a large scale, but it is important for the community, because represents hope and income for these people.
São João Del Rey group produces a variable type of handcraft. We can highlight the “chitão” (cloth with big petals drawings) flowers and colorful Holy Spirits.
Raízes Artesanato
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