Mama Mochila/Anna Gouznova
Tribal affiliation: Iku - Arhuaco- Colombia
How to purchase:
For a Living Arhuaco Culture
Shop on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/MamaMochila
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mamamochila/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mamamochila
Website: https://mamamochila.wixsite.com/mamamochila
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjfsI3iZ0_hClWME2hlxtTg
Get in touch with Anna Gouznova, Founder Mama Mochila (501c3)
Phone/Whatsapp: +1 603 757 3312
E-mail: mamamochila@gmail.com
Bio:
Mama Mochila emphasizes a living and practicing Arhuaco culture with growth opportunities that do not require the abandonment of the traditional lifestyle. Nearly all Mama Mochila artisans live as homesteaders, growing their own food in remote mountains and caring for large families. Our model emphasizes gender and generational inclusion, use of low impact materials, fine technique and artistic creativity. Mama Mochila strengthens Arhuaco families, culture and tradition through the ethical sale of handmade, Earth conscious Arhuaco craft. With your support, Indigenous Arhuaco artisans access the global market, develop new products and preserve their craft heritage.
Mama Mochila represents the community of Ati Gumake, nearly 50 families living remotely and steeped in Iku (Arhuaco) tradition. Our model began with the "lucha" or "fight" for truly fair wages for Iku women in 2010. Today, we are more than 30 artisans, including men, whose artisanal history is often untold yet is part of every mochila.
Words from the Artists:
"In the end, every mochila is a gift because no price could ever capture the history and spirituality that each one of our mochilas holds." Artist and Community Leader Claudia Villafane
Our culture and families are what we are most proud of. Mama Mochila inspires young Arhuaco people to learn from their parents and grandparents the ways of the mochila. Elders feel valued for the time, dedication and spirit they pass along in each mochila. With Mama Mochila, we are reclaiming our ancestral work with cotton and using the most traditional techniques known to create mochilas and teach the next generation.
Income from mochilas is invested into our farms and traditional way of life. This means we don't have to rely on donations of non-traditional clothes, unfamiliar foods and other items that over time, do away with who we are.
Your support is allowing us to create a new model, rooted in respect & understanding of who we are, Elder Brothers: Guardians of the Heart of the World. Thank you, or as we say, "Duni."
