Fair Trade Fashion and Design

Palacio de la Moneda, Artasania de Chile Mapuche exhibit, Santiago

The Mapuche are best known for their craft traditions in textiles, silver jewelry, wood, and basket weaving.  Many of the patterns, symbols, and techniques still used date back to pre-colonial times.

Here are some examples from Artasanía de Chile’s gallery at la Palacio de la Meneda in downtown Santiago.

Plata

(Silver)

silver and beaded traditional Mapuche jewelry

head pieces, worn in a circle around the top of the the head.

These are clothing pins, used to hold wrapping sweaters together as you wear them.

traditional Mapuche jewlery, worn by women for ceremonies

head pieces, worn in a circle around the top of the the head.

Textil, Lana

(Textile, Wool)

The textiles at the museum represented Mapuche work from many regions, and the pieces on display were up to one hundred years old. Patterns vary from community to community, as do the colors.  Since the wool is died naturally from plants in each region, and the plant varieties differ with the terrain, the colors of textiles are unique to their origin.

Alfombra (rug), gallery de Artesanía de Chile, Palacio de la Moneda

Alfombras tradicionales, Palacio de la Moneda, Artasania de Chile exhibit

Alfombras tradicionales, Palacio de la Moneda, Artasania de Chile exhibit

alfombras tradicionales, Palacio de la Moneda, Artasania de Chile exhibit

Alfombras tradicionales, Palacio de la Moneda, Artasania de Chile exhibit

traditional Trarihues, women's belts for ceremony

ponchos, Palacio de la Moneda, Artasanias de Chile exhibit, Santiago

Madera y Cestas

(Wood and Baskets)

Mapuche spirit sculptures, wood. Palacio de la Moneda, Artasania de Chile exhibit.

Mapuche baskets, Palacio de la Moneda, Artasanias de Chile exhibit

The designs you see here are are all  from the gallery of Fundación Artesanías de Chile.  The crafts originate in communities from all over the country.  Many of these crafts are still being made and used similarly today.