An
established forum or community is certainly passed through long process and
dynamics. The commitment to be part of it became the new spirit and principle
performed by women in Tanatuku village. Formerly, the weaving that was strange
to their ears now has become part of their activities and life stories. Their
great curiosity and the longing to be part of the tied weaving culture of East
Sumba made the women of Stube HEMAT so enthusiastic in practicing tied weaving.
The solidarity among them became the main asset they have created continuously
to carry out a sustainable activity.
Since September 16, 2020, every Wednesday and Friday are their agenda for training. They learn the process of weaving step by step, from spinning the yarns, yarns bundling, and currently designing motifs and tying the yarns. Before tying the yarns, the bundled yarns are tightened and fitted in a tool, called 'kapala' for a week, to make them easier to tie. During the yarns bundling process, the participants are invited to think about the various kinds of woven motifs in East Sumba and the meaning of each motif. Even though they know about woven cloth motifs, only few of them understand the meaning and symbol of each motif.
Therefore, during the session Mama Yustina, as the trainer, explained the meaning of several motifs they often used. The horse motif determines the social status of Sumbanese people. It symbolizes masculinity, courage, agility and heroism. The rooster motif shows the main work of the Sumbanese as breeders. It symbolizes consciousness, masculinity, a sign of life and a leader who is ready to protect. The parrot motif symbolizes unity and integrity, reflecting the spirit of the Sumbanese people to make decisions of affairs through deliberation or consensus. The human motif symbolizes the repulsion of evil, and contains supernatural powers and every human being needs recognition, attention, appreciation and love from others. The naked human motif symbolizes innocence, solitude, fear and poverty. The snake motif symbolizes arrogance, vanity, human side that is full of anger, vengeance and looking for chance to defeat the opponent. The deer motif with the splendor of its horns symbolizes the courage, majesty and wisdom of a leader in society. The shrimp motif symbolizes brotherhood, unity and oneness. The crocodile and tortoise motifs symbolize greatness, supernatural powers and have great influence.
Currently,
women community of Stube HEMAT is designing horse motifs. While completing the
bundled yarns they begin to imagine how to design and draw horse motif on the
yarns. The motifs are decorated on yarns that have been bundled and tied based
on the existing design. In the next meeting they will learn the process to
design and to tie the yarns. This process requires high concentration because
they have to think about the design of the motif, how to design and to tie the
yarns. Let us keep up the spirit of the women community to master their own
culture.***
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