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the
shoe story
the
ancient story
The
Aware Network is born from an ethical COLLABORATION
between indigenous Kuna Indian textile artists,
Fair Trade shoe producers in Colombia, and ourselves:
Daniel and Jasmine.
The shoes re-claim authentic
Mola textile art. The Mola art is re-used in the
shoes after the Kuna Indian women wear them on their
traditional blouses!
Mola designs originally came from tattoos that Kuna
Indians from South America traditionally painted
on their bodies, and was later transferred onto
cloth.
The
ancient tradition of the Mola textile is so inspiring:
a cultural practice passed on by the grandmothers
to the young girls in the Kuna community.
The textile Mola is a reverse applique technique of
sewing pieces of
colourful cloth with fine handstitching detail.
Molas
represent a view of the cosmos and life, a vision
of the world
full of colour and meaning for this Native Indian
culture vision of the world.
A
Kuna woman sews a mola to reflect her mastery of life
and wisdom. The detail and mastery of the textile
creation she wears shows her maturity, wisdom and
experience in life.
Once a woman enters a new chapter in life, she unstitches
the old Mola from her blouse (lets go of the old)
and stitches on the new Mola (welcoming the new).
A family-owned Fair Trade shoe producer business in
the capital city of Colombia re-claim the used Molas
and transform them into bright, funky shoes!
See
the new story
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