Arts & Crafts in Boa Vista
- Handicraft
Craftsmanship, in general, has left an indelible mark on the Cape Verde islands, both for the making of tools and the making of ornaments, always in a peculiar cultural sense. Accordingly, we cannot say that in Cape Verde there are works of art just to be looked at and ordinary objects just to be utilized, in other words, artisanry has truly and above all been a form of cultural expression. And all this thanks to the artisans, especially those who emerged from the world of slavery. Let us examine the case of an Island: Boa Vista.
Artisanry at Boa Vista appeared under several different forms. One of these is weaving. Probably inherited from the Muslims, this craft came to Boa Vista via Santiago, together with the slaves who were brought to the island in order to guard and herd goats. As early as in the sixteenth century, slave-weavers together with slave-shepherds, were sent from Santiago to Boa Vista. The growing and trading of cotton and indigo dye (from orchil) at Boavista facilitated the development of weaving, as the cloth produced was used for both for clothing and for barter in the slave trade on the west coast of Africa. In Boa Vista, the fabric for clothing differed from that used for redeeming slaves, for while the former was made of strips of cotton one hand wide, the latter had six strips along the width and were 10 hands long.
Generally, cloths were classified as thick cloths, thin cloths and rich fabrics.
We should mention that in Boa Vista weaving was not limited to producing simple cloth: blankets, quilts and shawls were also produced there, classified as wide band cloth.
Boa Vista woven cloth was present at the 1862 London International Exhibition, with two garments donated by D. Thereza Montel, in colour retrós, after the fashion of the country and revealing admirable taste and quality.
Pottery is another craft that made its mark on the island of Boa Vista in the past. To the extent, in fact, that it is simply not possible to talk about the golden period of the island without taking ceramics into consideration.
Pottery is one of the oldest activities known to man. Yet another craft probably inherited from the Muslims, ceramics reached Boa Vista just the same way as weaving: slave-goatherders from Santiago in the sixteenth century. The existence of boundless amounts of clay in Boa Vista, more precisely at Rabil, facilitated the introduction and development of pottery in the island. In addition to being the raw material for ceramics, Boa Vista clay is regarded as having excellent medicinal properties, for which purporse it is much sought after.
Over the years, Cape Verde pottery underwent significant evolution, often unbeknownst to most. It has earned its place, contributing towards the enrichment of Creole culture and today is one of the most genuine forms of cultural expression.
There are other crafts in Boa Vista worthy of note, such as tanning, ropemaking, embroidery and making objects out of tortoise-shell, clay, ox horns, coconut shell, and other raw materials. Also distinctive in Boa Vista are the traditional straw hats, ceirões, balaios de Ervatão, saddles and others.
This is just a sample of the different crafts and respective techniques which can be found in settlements in the interior of the island of Boa Vista. Many age-old uses have stood the test of time in the Cape Verde archipelago, mainly due to the conservative persistence of rural areas, coupled with the isolation of the island and the disdain harboured for certain social groups and their customs in the past.
In fact, in the past, the island of Boa Vista was strongly marked by its rural economy, based on cattle farming. Boa Vista artisanry is a reflection of its history, when the island of Boa Vista took a prominent role in Cape Verde between the seventeenth and the nineteenth centuries.
Craftsmanship, in general, has left an indelible mark on the Cape Verde islands, both for the making of tools and the making of ornaments, always in a peculiar cultural sense. Accordingly, we cannot say that in Cape Verde there are works of art just to be looked at and ordinary objects just to be utilized, in other words, artisanry has truly and above all been a form of cultural expression. And all this thanks to the artisans, especially those who emerged from the world of slavery. Let us examine the case of an Island: Boa Vista.
Artisanry at Boa Vista appeared under several different forms. One of these is weaving. Probably inherited from the Muslims, this craft came to Boa Vista via Santiago, together with the slaves who were brought to the island in order to guard and herd goats. As early as in the sixteenth century, slave-weavers together with slave-shepherds, were sent from Santiago to Boa Vista. The growing and trading of cotton and indigo dye (from orchil) at Boavista facilitated the development of weaving, as the cloth produced was used for both for clothing and for barter in the slave trade on the west coast of Africa. In Boa Vista, the fabric for clothing differed from that used for redeeming slaves, for while the former was made of strips of cotton one hand wide, the latter had six strips along the width and were 10 hands long.
Generally, cloths were classified as thick cloths, thin cloths and rich fabrics.
We should mention that in Boa Vista weaving was not limited to producing simple cloth: blankets, quilts and shawls were also produced there, classified as wide band cloth.
Boa Vista woven cloth was present at the 1862 London International Exhibition, with two garments donated by D. Thereza Montel, in colour retrós, after the fashion of the country and revealing admirable taste and quality.
Pottery is another craft that made its mark on the island of Boa Vista in the past. To the extent, in fact, that it is simply not possible to talk about the golden period of the island without taking ceramics into consideration.
Pottery is one of the oldest activities known to man. Yet another craft probably inherited from the Muslims, ceramics reached Boa Vista just the same way as weaving: slave-goatherders from Santiago in the sixteenth century. The existence of boundless amounts of clay in Boa Vista, more precisely at Rabil, facilitated the introduction and development of pottery in the island. In addition to being the raw material for ceramics, Boa Vista clay is regarded as having excellent medicinal properties, for which purporse it is much sought after.
Over the years, Cape Verde pottery underwent significant evolution, often unbeknownst to most. It has earned its place, contributing towards the enrichment of Creole culture and today is one of the most genuine forms of cultural expression.
There are other crafts in Boa Vista worthy of note, such as tanning, ropemaking, embroidery and making objects out of tortoise-shell, clay, ox horns, coconut shell, and other raw materials. Also distinctive in Boa Vista are the traditional straw hats, ceirões, balaios de Ervatão, saddles and others.
This is just a sample of the different crafts and respective techniques which can be found in settlements in the interior of the island of Boa Vista. Many age-old uses have stood the test of time in the Cape Verde archipelago, mainly due to the conservative persistence of rural areas, coupled with the isolation of the island and the disdain harboured for certain social groups and their customs in the past.
In fact, in the past, the island of Boa Vista was strongly marked by its rural economy, based on cattle farming. Boa Vista artisanry is a reflection of its history, when the island of Boa Vista took a prominent role in Cape Verde between the seventeenth and the nineteenth centuries.
