Author: Paula Davis

The Arraiolo rugs of Diamantina

The Minas Gerais city of Diamantina was a center of European culture with a thriving economy during Brazil’s colonial period. Gold and diamonds attracted hordes of explorers from all parts of Brazil and beyond. However, once the mines were depleted, work opportunities were few and far between – similarly to what has happened in the nearby Jequitinhonha Valley. Also in Diamantina, craft played a very important role in the local economy. The wool rugs of Arraiolos, a small town in Portugal, are made with a needlework style that is inspired by Persian carpets, since the Middle Ages.  But it wasn’t until quite recently that this craft style became known – and made – in Brazil. Known simply as “tapete arraiolo” in Brazil, the rug-making technique was introduced in the 1970s through to an initiative of the then archbishop of Diamantina, who sought to create work for the impoverished housewives of the region. Maria de Fátima

Craft, poverty and social change in Brazil

Brazil is a very unequal society. In big cities like São Paulo, it is possible to walk down a street filled with Chanel and Louis Vuitton shops that are more expensive than they are in Europe and then to turn a corner to find someone living in a shack built on the street. According to the World Bank, there are only 12 countries in the world that have a worse distribution of income. The World Bank uses a measurement called the Gini coefficient to measure income inequality – put simply, if every person in a country has the same income then the Gini would be 0 and if one person has all the cash then the Gini would be 1. The Gini coefficient is usually multiplied by one hundred so that it can be written as a percentage. So to give you an idea of the various scores, Denmark is the most

Brazilian fabrics bring warmth to your home

With its bold and bright colors and floral patterns, Brazilian fabric chita lends a very warm, summery feel to any decor scheme. We have already talked about chita here on Gift Brazil – the chita, which was only a “fabric of the masses” back in the day returned to the mainstream with full force in recent decades. The chita – or “chitão,” as it is also known – and is used not only in local craft items, but by also interior designers as part of a project with lots of Brazilian character and anyone looking to give a summery touch to their home decoration. To give you a feel of what it would look like in practice, we selected some amazing homely spaces where chita has taken a leading role – with so many bright colors around, how would it be possible to come home after a long day at work and

The basket weaver of Monte Alegre do Sul

“When I go out everyday, my husband thinks I am going to a meeting” As softly spoken basket weaver Santina Berlofa sits down to talk about her life-long love for handmade, her eyes sparkle and a broad smile lights up the 82 year-old artisan’s face. When I arrive for our meeting on a bright Sunday morning, Santina is actually working – she does the voluntary job of serving customers at the shop run by the artisan association of Monte Alegre do Sul, a small town in the countryside of São Paulo, every day. “I come here everyday to work, but my husband thinks I am going to attend a meeting of the association. He asks: ‘are they going to close the association?’ I tell him ‘it is not going to happen’ and he sighs in relief – we have that same conversation all the time,” she laughs. Santina has been

John Hudson’s guesthouse in Paraty, Rio de Janeir

When the subject is luxury accommodation, small inns or bed & breakfasts tend to be charming and highly personal, while big hotels offer everything a guest could want – but the places offering the best of both worlds are few and far between. For this very reason, John Hudson’s beautifully decorated pousada (inn) Vivenda has – for a few years now – been the winner of TripAdvisor’s Travellers Choice award for B&Bs and Inns in the small coastal town of Paraty, in Rio de Janeiro. A little oasis located a short walk away from the town, the place has a magical air of seclusion, privacy, and exclusivity that carries into the two pristine white bungalows and a suite inside the main house. Most prominent in these self-contained homes with dining area, fully equipped kitchen and porch is the Brazilian art and craft collection on the walls and spaces, curated by Vivenda’s owner himself, who also built

Rio beach paradise creates embroidery tradition

An hour’s walk through the jungle from the small Rio de Janeiro coastal town of Paraty, an amazingly beautiful and peaceful beach only shared with a few locals and surfers can be found. Far from everything and close to paradise, the Praia do Sono (Sleep Beach, in Portuguese) is home to less than 70 families, including many women who are now working to establish a tradition in embroidery. Supported by Sebrae, the Brazilian service of support for small enterprises, the group “Bordadeiras da Praia do Sono” (“The Embroiderers from Sleep Beach”, in a literal Portuguese translation) made their first foray into embroidery in 2007 with the intention of supplementing the income of their partners, mainly fishermen or builders working in the region. Since then, the embroidery work from this tiny village is now gaining popularity across Brazil for its rustic and original themes, which represent the everyday lives of coastal

Enabling digital inclusion in Brazil with craft

Digital inclusion is a topic really close to our heart at Gift Brazil. We believe that our project is not just about helping artisans to sell their products to the world, it also helps these people in remote locations to learn about the value that the Internet can introduce into their life. These people can enter the digitally included society with our help, but there are some strange things taking place in the digital world in Brazil at present. On Wednesday this week, the President of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, signed a new bill into law that guarantees online privacy and equal access rights for Brazilian Internet users. Called the Marco Civil da Internet, (also known  as the country’s “Internet Constitution”) this bill goes further, but is effectively a bill of rights for the public, setting out the way Internet Service Providers must behave and explicitly addressing questions around spying – this is

Brazil promotes local craft during World Cup

Brazilian artisans will have the opportunity to showcase their products at World Cup venues and cultural spaces during the sporting events. The project Vitrines Culturais (Cultural Shop Windows, in Portuguese) is led by the Ministry of Culture and will select 60,000 items to showcase Brazil’s handmade production to tourists visiting some of the host cities. “We’re looking for pieces representing the various regions of the country. We look for quality and diversity, beauty, creativity, which has the expression of our culture, our Brazil,” says Culture Minister Marta Suplicy. The minister made the point that foreigners may know Brazil from its beaches, carnival, beautiful women and good music, but that Brazil is “more than just that,” so the government wants to showcase the creativity of its craftspeople. Craft from around the country will be displayed in Fifa Fan Fest venues and cultural spaces between June 12 and July 13 in Manaus,

Uniting Brazilian craft and design

One of the trademark features of Brazilian design is the use of craft techniques in the production of items. The handmade and technology mix lends a unique Brazilian character to unusual decorative and utilitarian objects for the home, with designers Sérgio Matos, Nicole Tomazi, Paulo Biacchi and the Campana brothers being some of the main references of designers who currently invest in the style. But the proponents of this blend of techniques say that it is not an easy choice, as far as the local audience is concerned. That is because the mix craft with design is still underappreciated in Brazil and much more recognized and appreciated abroad. “Our work needs to get compliments in Milan so that Brazilians can appreciate our work. In Italy, there are excellent artisans working with leather, for example, who are very valued. Craft does not diminish the value of an item – it’s very

Cordel: craft and literature on the same page

Cordel literature is a popular literary expression characteristic of the Northeast. The verse-packed booklets to inform and entertain are illustrated with a handmade process and are the result of a tradition that is over a hundred years old. Brought to Brazil by Portuguese colonizers, cordel literature is massively popular in the Northeast of the country -particularly in the states of Pernambuco , Paraíba , Rio Grande do Norte and Ceará – and combines a unique literary expression with an equally singular type of craft.  These little books were traditionally displayed in street newsagents on a string (cordel), hence the name “cordel literature.” The first cordel brochures found in Brazil appeared in the the nineteenth century and became popular in the Northeast due to the lack of reliable print media. The essence of cordel is its narrative verse-based structure about themes of relevance to the population, printed in small booklets in newsprint