Q&A with Annie Millican: Awamaki Lab
This past May, Source4Style had an opportunity to visit Awamaki’s weaving projects taking place in Pantacancha, Peru. Annie Millican, Director of the Awamaki Lab, shares more about how her organization is helping bring age-old weaving techniques to modern-day design.
Source4Style: What is the Awamaki Lab project and why was it started?
Annie Millican: Awamaki Lab was set up as the product development arm of Awamaki’s weaving project. It is a four-month fashion design residency that explores apparel and accessory iterations using traditional Quechua textiles sourced from Awamak’s weaving association in Patacancha. The project was borne out of a need to facilitate female-led enterprises in the district of Ollantaytambo, and has three main objectives: To augment textile sales through the creation of covetable fashion pieces; to inspire the next generation of fashion designers to consider environmental and social implications of design; and to create a sustainable enterprise for women in Ollantaytambo by financing a sewing co-operative.
S4S: What is the designer’s role in the process?
AM: Our annual designer-in-residence frames Andean textiles in a way that resonates with a wider audience, capturing the attention of new consumers who would otherwise be unfamiliar with the rich Quechua weaving tradition. In this way, we hope to preserve and promote Andean textile art while augmenting income streams for our weavers.
Our annual designer-in-residence frames Andean textiles in a way that resonates with a wider audience, capturing the attention of new consumers who would otherwise be unfamiliar with the rich Quechua weaving tradition.
S4s: Who was the first designer that Awamaki worked with and how did the mentoring process work?
AM: Awamaki Lab launched in September of 2010 with designer Nieli Vallin at the helm. Nieli’s progress was mentored by 2011 Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation recipient Tara St James of Study NY, and the AwaLab S1 collection was presented at Guilded in January 2011.
S4S: Source4Style had the opportunity to go and visit your weavers – but can you share with our readers where your weavers and seamstresses are located and how they work together?
AM: Our weavers live in the Patacancha Valley, located 45 minutes outside of the center of Ollantaytambo, while our costureras (seamstresses) are from a nearby town of Rumira, within the district of Ollanta. Weavers design and produce woven pieces in Patacancha, while the Lab seamstresses cut and sew these textiles into garments in our studio in Ollantaytambo.
In April of this year, Awamaki Lab opened the doors of its sewing co-operative space and began its capacitationes (training) program for three novice seamstresses. Justa, Florentina and Estela participated in an intensive two-month course that taught them the sewing skills necessary to produce select garments from Season 1. Though their numbers are small, their dedication and ambition is great and we’ve been able to sustain a high level of output.
S4S: How has the project been received by members of the Quechua community?
AM: The project has been received with enthusiasm by the 41 members of the Patacancha Weaving Association. This August, our sewing co-operative celebrated the completion of its first order of S1 Nieli Vallin skirts with a pacahmanka (traditional earth-oven lunch party) and show-and-tell in Patacancha. Weavers and seamstresses laughed and joked in Quechua, and Justa, Florentina and Estela received a round of applause at the conclusion of their presentation.
S4S: Have you been satisfied with the outcomes of the project?
AM: Yes, very much so. Our S2 designer, Andria Crescioni is currently in Ollantaytambo working on her collection, alongside members of our sewing co-op, and it’s incredibly gratifying and exciting to see her work inspire the Lab seamstresses, all of whom aspire to design more as their sewing and construction skills grow. Everyone involved in the AwaLab supply chain lives within an hour of each other, which creates a personal connection between weaver, designer and seamstress and an intimacy and friendliness that makes production and work a lot of fun.
Everyone involved in the AwaLab supply chain lives within an hour of each other, which creates a personal connection between weaver, designer and seamstress and an intimacy and friendliness that makes production and work a lot of fun.
S4S: Where are the materials used for the pieces sourced from?
AM: Textiles come from the Patacancha Weaving Association, and the majority of our base fabric is sourced from mills in Lima or purchased from local retailers in Cusco, in an effort to support domestic industry. Jasco Fabrics (available on Source4Style) has also been a huge source of support for us, and this year we have the opportunity to design with their fine eco-wool crepes. We’re very excited about this partnership because it provides a nice continuum in design in terms of fiber content.
S4S: I’m assuming all designs are one-of-a-kind?
AM: Each style is one-of-a-kind, but we’ll produce multiple units of each style, sold through our online store.
S4S: How does this collaboration affect the traditions and ways of life of the artisan weavers and the community involved?
AM: Forgive the pop-culture reference, but sometimes it helpful to think of Awamaki Lab as an extended project runway challenge: In keeping with Awamaki’s overarching mission to help preserve and promote the Quechuan textile tradition, we do not dictate woven patterns or color schemes to the weaving association. Instead, it is the responsibility of the designer to use these textiles in ways that piques the interest of fashionable consumers.
The collaboration does not impede the aesthetic choices of our weavers, or interfere with daily life in Patacancha. By creating sales channels for traditional Quechua textiles, we enable women in Patacancha to continue to invest the time and energy needed to evolve and improve their weaving skills. Consistent sales also demonstrate the far-reaching demand for their artistic patrimony, which presumably instills a great sense of pride in the weavers. It affirms something that they already know: Their art is truly awe-inspiring and appreciated globally.
S4S: Do you think designer involvement is necessary for these pieces to be appealing to a wider (and Western) market? If so, to what degree?
AM: I think the Patacancha texiles can stand alone as decorative pieces, but some curation helps bridge the gap between gift-items and higher-end goods. Designer participation is necessary to realize the vision of Awamaki Lab: The value of the cross-culture collaboration can be measured by the knowledge exchanged between designer and seamstress. Eventually the women in our sewing co-op will design pieces themselves, so the new aesthetic perspective each designer brings broadens the scope of design possibilities for our seamstresses.
I think its less about western designers satisfying a western point of view, and more about creating something that is continuously innovative and referent of Quecha textile traditions and the heritage and magnificent landscape of Ollantaytambo.
Designer participation is necessary to realize the vision of Awamaki Lab: The value of the cross-culture collaboration can be measured by the knowledge exchanged between designer and seamstress.
S4S: Beautifully said. Fashion, is however – whether we like it or not – a business. How can you ensure the artisan community that their skills and products do not become commoditized and are truly cherished for the labor and knowledge put into them?
AM: Ollantaytambo is the port of entry for travelers visiting Machu Picchu, so artisans here have direct access to the tourism market. This means they have an opportunity to educate consumers directly about the processes involved in their work. That being said, the tourist profile varies drastically, and tourists often just want to bargain and find kitschy “Andean” goods. Awamaki runs a sustainable tourism program in an effort to educate tourist consumers about the history of arts and crafts in the Sacred Valley.
S4S: Thanks so much Annie for your work and time. ♥
