Karin Altmann and Nana Opoku
For this workshop, Karin invited spinner Mariam, whom she had met in 2023, to give a spinning demonstration.
When the old woman sat down on the floor and began working with her tools and finally spinning, most of the weavers took out their mobile phones and began photographing and filming her.
Karin was surprised by the reaction of the weavers, women who have threads in their hands every day. Even for them it was something special to watch the unique techniques Mariam had practiced since childhood.
That was the initial moment and the confirmation to start this project as soon as possible.
Our project formally took shape at the Woori Textile Festival held at the Nubuke Foundation’s Centre for Textiles and Clay in Wa / Upper West Ghana. Karin and Nana were there exhibiting their work and supporting the festival.
Karin was asked by the Nubuke Foundation to conduct a workshop and sharing session for local weavers from Wa, Nandom and Nandowli on care and self-care, sustainability and quality in natural dyeing and textile making processes during the Woori Textile Festival.
As Nana and Karin spoke with each other, they discovered a shared interest in preserving and reviving these endangered textile traditions. Karin’s background in transcultural research and natural dyeing aligned with Nana’s deep fascination stemming from his visit to Sognayili. This meeting in Wa became the spark for their joint proposal.