ALEJO TAPIAS

Alejotapias Studio has been working with different communities around Colombia for 6 years, developing handmade design products made of natural fibers.

The Tetera Collection is made by the artisans of the Eperara Siapiadara community, native of the Cauca department.

In this collection Alejandro works with 12 local women, who were mostly displaced by the war in Colombia. With this project what we do is to develop shades of lamps using the artisans technics that they used to use in their day to day life, creating a product that combines traditional techniques and modern style.

The Iraca Collection is handmade by artisans around Atlántico region, in the Caribbean coast of Colombia. This collection of lamps is inspired by the diversity of Alejandro’s origin country, creating unique tropical shades for the interior.

All his products are made a 100% handmade and therefore come in smaller quantities.

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TEJEDURIA ‘’Iraca’’

Using the “Iraca” palm fibers, the artisans have astonished the art crafts world with their designs of hats and other ornamental objects. The weaving technique used by artisans in the making of products in Iraca is one of the richest and most delicate in the entire territory of Colombia.
Using tools such as needles, scissors, tweezers and pliers, the artisans can make stitches such as: three passes, partridge eye, four passes, wicker, mat, catatumba, knuckle of four passes, chair bottom, embroidered rhombus, embroidered flower, flowers with petals and starfish flower.
Natural dyes extracted from seeds, leaves, bark, roots and minerals make it possible to obtain ranges of different colors (yellow gold, blue, green, terracotta, red wine, black).
During cooking, the artisan constantly turns the fiber so that the color is fixed evenly. Before letting the material dry in the shade, the buds are shaken, holding them on the stem, so that each of the straws close up and set.

CAUCA

The Andean mountain knot of the Colombian Massif is located in Cauca. There, the central and western mountain ranges of Colombia are born, as well as the two great Colombian Inter-Andean rivers, Cauca and Magdalena. Its capital, Popayán, has a historic center which remains with all its colonial architecture

The indigenous community with which we work in Cauca are the Eperara Siapidara.

The culture of the Eperara community is interpreted in two space worlds: The ‘’ethereal world’’ – world of Jai, of spirits or shadows – and the ‘’physical world’’ – ecosystem where society unfolds.

The community stands out for their agricultural work. They are led by the ‘’Tachi Nawe’’ (our mother), the highest spiritual chief and priestess.