Kerkenatiss is the only artisanal group on the island of Kerkennah, which has advocated, among other things, the protection of craftsmanship and island tradition for four decades.
The story began in El Ataya, an agglomeration where Fatma Samet grew up among fishermen, weavers and women embroiderers. Committed to promoting the wealth of the island, she was involved in the transfer of local know-how and its durability.
A plastic artist specializing in traditional art weaving, Fatma Samet has been a professor at the Sfax University of Crafts and has held many other positions, notably in the administration of crafts. Today, she is 100% dedicated to Kerkenatiss and continues to work on embroidery and basketry.
Famous, the stitch of Kerkennah is the testimony of a wonderful mixing and mixing of counted stitches. The embroidery is applied on a natural woolen cloth red or black formerly spun and hand woven. Twisted yarns in orange, green and black in pure wool feature graphic icons entirely set with pink or bluish white thread in pure cotton. Two decades ago, the last weaver of the island disappeared and the women no longer carried out the spinning and dyeing operation. Today, Kerkenatiss allows about fifty women to network by providing them with high quality raw material to preserve an embroidery that stands out for its originality.
In Kerkennah, artisanal fishermen have always used local and natural raw materials derived from the palm tree that are within their reach without destroying their own environment.
They have produced basketry, which at first glance seems to be a rudimentary product, but it becomes easy to grasp all the complexity if one takes the trouble to observe the production cycle. Today, basketry offers a myriad of design products that are highly appreciated by an ecologist clientele who attaches more importance to the production method than to the product itself.
For Fatma Samet: “Kerkenatiss insists on the production process and on the importance of the cultural burden that a craft product can release because we are convinced that the craft industry was, and must remain unconditionally a mode of production and not a type of product. “
About Kerkenatiss
Adress : Ouled Kacem Kerkena – 3025 Tunisie.
Phone : (+216) 74 481 802
Mobile : (+216) 58 333 350
Email : kerkenatiss@gmail.com
Web : www.kerkenatiss.com
Photo Credit: Pierre Gassin
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