In March 2024, I visited Morocco just for fun, but of course I gravitated to hand craft.  In Casablanca, I was delighted to serendipitously bump into an exhibition celebrating National Handicrafts Week, sponsored by His Majesty King Mohammed VI.  Booths of superb carpets were beautifully displayed.  WeBerber was the one that particularly caught my eye.  The two Amazigh (Berber) entrepreneurs welcomed my friend and me, and enthusiastically showed us weavings by at least three different communities.  Most amazing were beautiful silk tassels that they explained serve as Amazigh women’s traditional underwear.  Today the tassel yarns are recycled into new carpets.

I began to follow this enterprise on Instagram.  WeBerber https://moroccan-carpet.com @the_moroccan_carpet is a leading provider of traditional Moroccan rugs that was founded in 2017 by Abdelghani Hammoud, of the third generation of a Moroccan Berber artisan family. Situated in Khemisset, near Rabat in the Middle Atlas mountains, the enterprise embodies a rich heritage in crafting exquisite handmade wool rugs and is committed to quality and authenticity.

I was happy to learn that on 14 May 2024, WeBerber launched their latest collection of traditional and contemporary natural dyed and hand knotted and woven Moroccan rungs. The carpets are crafted with wonderful geometric patterns that narrate Amazigh (Berber) terrain, lifestyle, and cultural heritage.  The collection debuted at the opening of the Morettina showroom in Dar Bouazza.

Not only are WeBerber carpets visually delicious; they also preserve and celebrate traditional knowledge, craftsmanship, and creative innovation –and they provide sustainable income opportunities for Amazigh artisans, a winning recipe close to my heart.

 

Artisans by Design: An Odyssey of Education for Textile Artisans in India

Judy Frater- with Photos by Nevada Wier
Schiffer Publishing Ltd – October 28, 2024.

The Book

Artisans by Design chronicles the journey of developing the first design school for artisans in India and fifteen years of artisans learning design. Spanning 50 years, the story is told in vignettes of artisans who were part of the journey, intertwined with the author’s story. Through this dialogue, the reader experiences what happened, how and why, and what its impact has been on traditional artisans in the contemporary world.

A rare, intimate portrayal of artisans, the book offers personal connections to people usually glimpsed from a distance and insights into tradition, craft, and the creativity of traditional artisans. It provides textile afficionados and people concerned with sustainability an authentic, fresh approach to development, illuminates sustainability as cultural heritage and presents development as human centered.

Launch and Tour

To celebrate, Frater and two artisan design graduates will hold a series of events during November & December 2024.

Illustrated panel talks on the Odyssey of Education for Artisans of Kutch
Workshops on weaving and bandhani (tied resist dyeing)
Trunk shows of textiles designed and created by design graduates

Click here to see tour dates! | Book Details & Where to Putchase