Keeping weaving tradition alive
Maria Suda Umang is dedicated to preserving the mat weaving culture via her artistic endeavours. Her biggest mat recently went viral on Facebook. The event shows that, even as modernisation occurs, culture and heritage remain relevant.
SARAWAK is a melting pot of heritage and culture. Mat weaving is one of the various elements that contribute to Sarawak’s uniqueness.
The weaving culture represents the Dayak, highlanders, and many others who have relied on the craft for generations. Today, it is regarded as one of rural Sarawak’s essential characteristics.
Maria Suda Umang recently became viral on social media after weaving a large mat for a customer. Sarawakians expressed their pride in the post for preserving the tradition.
Maria, who is from Tr Boniface Giri longhouse in Nanga Gremai, Kanowit, spoke to New Sarawak Tribune about her project and said that she began weaving actively in 2019.
“I got involved after seeing several people in the longhouse taking up weaving as a hobby. When I first started, I just wove simple designs. It has now been four years since,” she said, adding that she learned by tracing the designs of existing motifs. “I was then motivated to weave various patterns.”
Process of weaving
Maria said that finding the materials needed for weaving is simpler now than it was when she was younger.
“Because everything is now sold at the market. Sourcing them is easy as there is a market for them because weaving mats is still a profitable hobby.”
When asked what materials she uses, Maria said that PVC rope in various colours would be the basics.
Jangat, a tool used to cut the rope, and pemisit, a tool used to make the gaps smaller when weaving, are examples of equipment utilised.
According to the experienced weaver, the crafting procedure begins with cutting the ropes to the desired length and width.
“I would first make a smaller version of the original mat to use as a model. Then we begin weaving. The weaving procedure comprises counting the rope ties according to the motifs chosen by consumers. I’ll finish by cutting out all of the extra rope, and then it’s done!”
Maria normally takes a week or two to weave a small mat.
“It took me roughly a month to weave the largest mat that went viral. The duration is determined by the motif’s size and difficulty,” she said.
Crafts involving weaving can be tedious since its weavers must be focused; Maria acknowledged that this was one of the difficulties she encountered.
“When I weave, I occasionally make mistakes. I would then need to undo the ties and weave again.” She also mentioned that one of the difficulties was the high cost of materials.
“With each passing day, the cost of the materials I used increased. It used to cost RM60 for a large roll of PVC rope, but the price has since gone up by RM10 to RM20.”
A small mat, according to her, requires at least two large rolls of different colours. Maria revealed that she purchased four big rolls to create the biggest mat that went viral.
“Despite the rising cost of materials, we maintained our prices. The result was a decrease in our profit margin.”
Aside from that, Maria said that time was a challenge for her to weave continuously.
“Because weaving takes up a lot of time, I had to sacrifice my time for it, especially the time for myself and the time working on the farm. I often go to the farm in the morning and weave at night. When there are a lot of orders, I will sacrifice my sleep time to complete them.”
Mats are also revered as a sacred symbol that is used in rituals. Maria not only weaves ordinary mats, but she also weaves traditional bemban mats.
When asked about any taboos associated with weaving these types of mats, Maria said that weavers normally perform an offering known as the miring ritual prior to their work.
“We need to make the offerings so that nothing bad happens and to protect us from anything bad while we weave the traditional mat.”
Traditional mats, or tikai lama, have designs that represent mythical creatures like dragons.
Keeping the culture alive
The 54-year-old grandmother, who is deeply passionate about the art of weaving mats, said that having the opportunity to boost her income was what further motivated her.
Aside from creating mats, she added that she also crochets. She is, nevertheless, still enthusiastic about weaving mats.
“Crocheting is simple. Nowadays, we can learn by tracing the motifs drawn on paper. It really depends on how diligent someone is. Weaving mats presents me with challenges, which I love. Thus, my intense passion for it,” Maria added.
Her enthusiasm is intertwined with a desire to preserve the art form for future generations.
“Our world is now very modernised. With the help of our phone, everything is shared online. We frequently exchange creative ideas. So do I. I usually share everything on social media.”
Maria further said that the internet facilitates the globalisation of culture and heritage.
“Not only will people in Sarawak be aware of the art of mat weaving, but the entire world will be able to realise that this is who we are. Thus, I urged the younger generation to learn to weave so that this tradition would not become extinct”.
