Patricia Hurtado speaks with great pride, knowing she is heiress to the knowledge of her Misak culture. At weaving atelier Espiral Misak, every stitch she makes, everything she speaks of is the result of the collective memory and effort of this women's collective. Patricia says she is just another voice of this community of women, who, together with their leader, Cecilia Tombé founded Espiral Misak in 2015. Its mission is to spread their identity, as well as to rediscover the craft that has been lost over the years.
Sitting among themselves, the women of Misak weave to understand their weaving heritage and the stories that come with it. Together they wear and weave anacos, hats, chumbes and necklaces. The women of this atelier are creating a new narrative for themselves and for the department of Cauca, which is sometimes unjustly labelled as violent because of the fierceness of its indigenous communities. The violence that has attacked the region for years has other origins that they themselves seek to defeat by seeking a balanced relationship with the land.
Espiral Misak
