I’m more than excited to be working with weavers and community activists from the Tanimbar Islands in Indonesia, on this project weaving together Tanimbarese stories, textiles and philosophy. On Saturday, I had a great chat on Zoom with Shinta Klise from the Lamerenan Foundation, Poppy Barkah from Wastra Indonesia, and Crissy Guerrero from Meet the Makers Indonesia — discussing Tanimbarese history, philosophy, art, and the demands of the ancestors. And we’re bringing our conversations to the public with an event in Jakarta weaving together cloth, stories and philosophy.
It’s decades since I have been in Tanimbar (see my book, Stealing With the Eyes, dedicated to those same ancestors, with apologies), but it’s played a big part of my life. It looms large in my imagination, and in my heart. I’ll be sharing some stories and reflections on Tanimbarese traditional philosophy from my base in Taiwan, but next time, I’m going to see if I can make it to Jakarta to take part in person.
Here’s the signup link if you want to come along: https://bit.ly/Tanimbar-Tales
