In spring 2022, the Habele Outer Island Education Fund in the Federated States of Micronesia was one of 10 projects chosen to receive a highly-competitive Community Collections Grant from the American Folklife Center (AFC) through the Library’s Of the People: Widening the Path initiative. Funded by the Mellon Foundation, the grant program serves to support … Continue reading Peer-to-Peer Documentation of Micronesian Weaving
Micronesian Looms: Weaving Connections in the US (3)
This is the third in a series of posts dealing with Weaving Connections, a project of Habele to sustain and preserve Micronesian backstrap weaving traditions among Island populations who’ve migrated to the United States mainland. More here Development of Initial Prototypes First, Habele fabricated a scale model, and then a full-size initial specimen, of a … Continue reading Micronesian Looms: Weaving Connections in the US (3)
Invest in Scholarships for Micronesian Students
Friends of Habele, Once a year, this fundraising letter is sent to a modest list of individual Americans with some personal connection to the Islands of Micronesia. You, the reader, may be a returned Peace Corps Volunteer, formerly of the State Department, family of a serviceman or official who served in the Islands, an academic … Continue reading Invest in Scholarships for Micronesian Students
Micronesian Looms: Weaving Connections in the US (1)
This is the first in a series of posts dealing with Weaving Connections, a project of Habele to sustain and preserve Micronesian backstrap weaving traditions among Island populations who’ve migrated to the United States mainland. More here Framing the Problem Though loom weaving of skirts is central to daily life in the Caroline Islands, few … Continue reading Micronesian Looms: Weaving Connections in the US (1)
“Weaving Connections” supports Micronesian Weavers in US Mainland
Beautiful loom-woven textiles of Micronesia display an artistry and technical virtuosity unrivaled elsewhere in the Pacific. Chief among them is the lavalava, a woven skirt from the Outer Islands of Yap State, situated in the Western Caroline Islands. A new website aims to ensure this important cultural skill is preserved among weavers who have moved … Continue reading “Weaving Connections” supports Micronesian Weavers in US Mainland