Gilberto & Óscar Granja

Barniz de Pasto

Woodworker

©Artesanías de Colombia

From father to son

Óscar works to preserve his father's legacy
This craft is inherited from native traditions
Pasto Varnish of Nariño was listed by UNESCO in 2021

Everything that Óscar Granja knows about Pasto Varnish is thanks to his father, the master Gilberto Granja. The family workshop has been dedicated to this woodworking technique for more than six decades. The results of the technique could well be confused with a pattern made on a computer due to the incredible precision that their mastery of the craft achieves. After devoting 22 years to architecture and graphic communication, Óscar decided to return to work with his father. He started practising the Pasto Varnish again using just the basic colours in the background: white, mahogany and red. He learned to make figures, landscapes and everything that an artisan of such a meticulous technique must know how to do.

Interview

©Artesanías de Colombia

©Artesanías de Colombia

Why did you choose this craft?: Óscar: My father, Gilberto has worked with the Pasto Varnish technique for 57 years. I learned the craft as a child, but I committed to it as a career after hearing my father tell a client that the Granja legacy will die when he dies. My heart was touched by this.
How is your craft linked to your homeland?: Gilberto: Mopa Mopa comes from native traditions. It is part of the living memory of the people from Nariño and Putumayo. It was declared a cultural heritage of the nation in 2018 and it was included in the UNESCO List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2021.
What are your sources of inspiration?: Gilberto: We, craftspeople who work the Pasto Varnish, find inspiration in our immediate context: the Galeras, Azufral, and Cumbal volcanoes; La Cocha and Verde lagoons; the flora and fauna of our surroundings.
How do you express tradition and innovation in your work?: Óscar: We are always looking for new ways to use the Pasto Varnish (made from the resin obtained from the mopa-mopa tree) on various materials and with novel formats, thus contributing to safeguarding, spreading and innovating this crafting technique.

Gilberto & Óscar Granja are master artisans: they began their career in 2010 and they started teaching in 2015