The Art and the Craft

A rattan and horse hair basket, the base of what will become a lacquer vase. Other steps to creating lacquerware are shown below.

The people of Myanmar are incredible artisans. Old-world craftsmanship trumps all, and the beautiful textiles, wood carvings, parasols, puppets and more are all meticulously made by hand. The traditions and methods astound; the finished products inspire.

Finished lacquerware pieces.

Silk spinning.

Silk weaving.

Hand-beaded tapestry.

Gold Leaf making.

With the sheer amount of gold leaf that this country and its people command for their temples and Buddhist icons, it's hard to believe that the majority of the gold leaf is still pounded flat by hand. I wouldn't have believed it had I not seen it for myself, but the back-breaking work required to make the tissue-thin leafing is going strong in Myanmar where automated machinery is prohibitively expensive. Precious metal, indeed.