Mama Nature's Artists
The village women who make these beautiful mats learned the art from their mothers, aunts, and grandmothers. In Mayumba, women who have reached the age of wisdom are given the respectful title Mama. Now it is up to these Mamas to pass their legacy along to their daughters, nieces, and granddaughters. You can send them a personal message of encouragement through our email address and we will hand deliver it to them in their village.
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Mama Rose Mama Rose is the wife of the chief of the Tchiloli-Ndembe fishing village. Her mother taught her to weave when she was 7 years old. She has seven children and many grandchildren. She often weaves animal designs like turtles and crocodiles into her mats.
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Mama The-The is the Malembe village chief's wife. She teaches her daughters the art of weaving. "I learned to weave when I was very young. I teach the girls to weave so that our cultural heritage will continue."
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Mama Helene is from Malembe village. She weaves mats to help support her 5 grandchildren. "I weave what's in my heart." |
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Mama Elisabeth's mother taught her to weave when she was 12 years old. Elisabeth taught her daughter, Marie (below) to weave, and now is teaching two girls in her village: Murielle, age 17, and Aude, age 13. She says: "If the girls have a good head on their shoulders, they will learn to weave like I do." |
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Mama Marie is from the village of Tiya. She weaves designs that capture the beauty of the rainforest surrounding her village. She is Mama Elisabeth's daughter, and learned to weave from her mother when she was a young girl. |
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Mama Angelique learned to weave mats when she was a young bride. She lives in Malembe village. The mats she makes are very intricate and tightly woven. Here, she is teaching her granddaughter, Reina, to weave. |
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Mama Ernestine learned to weave when she was a young girl. She too, is from Malembe. In her words: "Our mothers told us that we must weave, because our time on Earth is limited. In our custom, each time there is a family problem, mats are always needed to resolve it. So it is very important to weave mats." |
