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June 2015

The rainy season, usually from June through September, brings cooler temperatures and flowing rivers and waterfalls in Laos. Also known as the Green Season, there are fewer tourists than the high season months of January and February. The slower pace gives us time to focus more on our collection and special projects.

Read more below about:

Textiles and Shamanic Items Gifted to TAEC Collection
Animating Stories from Laos, the Women and Folktales Project
Jungle Vine Bags, Eco-friendly Traditional Bags from the Kmhmu
TAEC Joins the International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe this July
Ton Representing TAEC in the United States

Textiles and Shamanic Items Gifted to TAEC Collection

TAEC has received a generous donation of Lao-Tai, Katu, and Akha textiles and shaman’s ritual implements into its collection. Dr. Ellison Banks Findly, Professor of Religion and Asian Studies at Trinity College in Connecticut, has been conducting research in northern Laos since 2006, where she acquired many of her pieces. Her publications include, “Spirits in the Loom: Religion and Design in Lao-Tai Textiles” and the forthcoming “Tending the Spirits: The Shamanic Experience in Northeastern Laos”.

Other pieces from her collection have been gifted to the Fowler, de Young, and Textile Museums in the US. TAEC Co-Director Tara Gujadhur said, “It is challenging to expand our collection without significant funding. Dr. Findly’s substantial gift will help TAEC document and interpret textiles and shamanic traditions, and share material culture with young people in Laos.”

Animating Stories from Laos, the Women and Folktales Project

As traditional oral storytelling fades in Laos, the Women and Folktales Project aims to preserve and share ethnic stories with a wider audience using video and animation. A collaboration between the Luang Prabang Film Festival and TAEC, the project collects folk tales as told by ethnic women in Laos.

With support from the US Embassy Small Grants Program, filmmakers from Lao New Wave Cinema visited villages in Luang Prabang Province in January to record Hmong, Kmhmu, and Tai Lue folk tales. The team collected 19 stories and all have been translated into Lao and English.

Recently, the project team visited the villages for input and feedback on animation concepts for three of the stories. First drafts of the old man and orphan characters from a classic Kmhmu story about a “spider-man” can be seen above. Three animated shorts of traditional folk tales will premiere at this year's Luang Prabang Film Festival, 5 – 9 December.

Video: Meet the Animator, Chongkham Phonekeo
Video: Take a Peek Behind the Scenes of the Women and Folktales Project

Jungle Vine Bags
Eco-friendly Traditional Bags from the Kmhmu

Considered the original inhabitants of Laos, Kmhmu are recognized for their knowledge and use of forest materials including jungle vine, bamboo, and rattan. Traditionally, the Kmhmu would gather wild Liana vine from the forest and crochet this into sturdy vine bags. These are slung from the forehead to rest heavy loads on one's back, as seen above.

As the jungle vine is difficult to source, many Kmhmu today crochet plastic string for a brightly colored sturdy bag. All natural vine bags available at TAEC shops are created by Kmhmu women in Oudomxai and Luang Namtha Provinces. Our online shop carries two designs, a traditional bag and a vine pouch.

TAEC Joins the International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe in July

10 – 12 July

Museum Hill in Santa Fe

Buy Tickets here

More than 150 artists from 57 Countries will come together at the 12^th Annual International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe and TAEC will be there! CBS Sunday Morning says, “It’s like few other places in the world because it’s the world gathered all in one place.” Khoun Soutthivilay, TAEC Co-Director, will represent Laos with handicrafts from five ethnic minority groups.

The International Folk Art Alliance, host of the Market, aims to celebrate and preserve living folk art traditions and create economic opportunities for and with folk artists worldwide. We are honored to join them on this journey as we share embroidery, applique, and weaving from Katu, Kmhmu, Phou Tai, Tai Lue, and Yao Mien ethnic communities.

Ton Representing TAEC in the United States

In addition to his current internship at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), TAEC Collection Manager Ton Souvannalith has been introducing TAEC and our collection to other museums in the United States. As a Getty Fellow, he recently participated in the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) annual meeting in Atlanta and has introduced TAEC to the AAM staff in Washington D.C.

For the AMNH Division of Anthropology brown bag lunch series, he gave an informal talk about Conservation and Care of the TAEC Collection. With limited access to collection care resources found in more developed places, TAEC practices low-cost collection management techniques appropriate for our tropical environment. With over 400 objects from 30 ethnic groups in Laos, the TAEC Collection is an important pillar of the TAEC mission of preserving the cultural diversity of Laos.

See items from the TAEC Collection at the Virtual Collection of Asian Masterpieces.

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Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre

PO Box 222

Ban Khamyong

Luang Prabang, Lao PDR

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