We believe here at Esperanza en Acción that it is extremely important that the stories of the artisans that we work with are told. More often than not these are stories of perseverance and humility which are awe inspiring.
During a recent visit to Ducuale Grande, the cooperative highlighted below, the artisans told us they had almost been forced to shut down due to lack of clients. Luckily we are in the midst of making an order for an international client, and helping to keep the women of Ducuale Grande employed and in their community. Many sectors in Nicaragua do not have this same support and individuals are forced to leave their families and immigrate to other countries to look for sustainable work. Your support allows us to continue to support groups such as Ducuale Grande and to help them keep their cultural traditions alive.
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THE LEGEND GOES WAY
BACK
Ducuale Grande has a history in ceramics. The clay-rich
hills nearby made it a center for rustic, utilitarian pottery centuries ago, a tradition that has been kept alive today by this hard working group of women who love what they do.
Maritza is one of the leading members of the cooperative,
who has been a member for sixteen years.
She first learned the art of working in clay from her mother, who worked
in rustic, utilitarian pots and comales
(surfaces used for making tortillas).
When Maritza was twenty, she attended a workshop and learned how to
throw plates, mugs and cups on a wheel. She also learned how to decorate the pieces
with a lighter colored clay found in the nearby town of Santa Clara.
THE ORGANIZING BEGINS
The Women's Pottery Cooperative of Ducuale Grande began in
1990 when the Casa
de Cultura decided to unite women potters of Ducuale Grande to strengthen their
work. At that point there were only a
handful of women still working in ceramics in Condega, and they all worked
individually. From this humble beginning twenty women were organized and three learned how to throw on the wheel, a skill Martiza is very proud of. The cooperative still works together but now has ten active members carrying on the tradition.
The women potters still carry out the same practice of their
ancestors of collecting the clay from the nearby hills and mixing it with
water, river sand and a local pigment, tague.
Each piece is polished with river stones before it is fired, after which a traditional
pre-Columbian decorating technique is applied and it is re-fired to create its
unique surface. The women of the cooperative made the kilns they use today- forming bricks out of
the same clay to build the beehive shaped ovens.
THE POPULARITY
SPREADS
These women have become world renowned for their
simple yet elegant and creative ceramic work, receiving visitors from all over
the world, participating in international fairs, as well as being featured in
international newspapers and magazines by traveling journalists.
But the women of Ducuale Grande are not only known for their
beautiful work. They also are one of the
best organized pottery cooperatives in Nicaragua. They have participated in several workshops with other cooperatives around the country, teaching their
detailed methods of organization- including how they calculate their prices
from an in depth formula, how they rotate out all tasks, and how they organize
their work days.
THE EFFECTS AT HOME
Maritza's involvement in the cooperative has meant she can not only support her five children (who all go to school
regularly, a rule that Maritza is very strict about), but she has also been
able to overcome some of the strong machista
traditions in her town. As a
successful potter, she is able to provide for her most of her children's needs,
so she is not as dependent on her husband as other women are forced to be. As the current president of the cooperative,
she has learned how to speak in front of large audiences- something this shy and reserved woman never dreamed of being able to do.
And Maritza simply cannot deny her love for ceramics- as she speaks to
us about her work her eyes gleam, "I just love the feel of the soft clay, and how the piece feels as I
form it in my hands."
LONGHELD LEGACY
As we sit listening to Maritza, another woman from the
cooperative rushes in, interrupting us. She shows us an old, broken pot about the
size of her hands. As we examine it, she
explains how they use the same technique to make their pottery and that the
designs and form are similar as well. She
then tells us that this piece was found during the excavation process that was preparing for the building of a new
house in the town. "It is no accident that we do
what we do," she says, "our roots are in this work."
PRESERVING THE
CULTURE
If it wasn't for the support from fair trade, foreign organizations,
and visitors from all over, this culture of ceramics could have died out years
ago. As it is, these women are able to preserve a long
held tradition, support their families, and sustain themselves in a way that
they truly enjoy.
chip bag artwork. We went out to visit them in their now permanent location. It used to be agricultural land but now has been converted into a massive refugee camp for many people being relocated due to various natural disasters or land disputes. Even though it is right outside of Managua it takes us two hours to travel there, first by taxi and then on the bus. (Can you provide your support to help us purchase a vehicle?) As can be seen by the photos most 
pooled their resources and brought two small tables and five chairs to work on for the day. Seven women gathered together to begin learning how to make the bags. After two hours of being there the women were independently working on the first steps of the process and we left them to practice in their homes. We are hoping that by our next newsletter we will have photos of the finished product! 
