Batanes resuscitates dying artisans' craftsmanship

The provincial government of Batanes and the private sector are reviving the province’s weaving industry, with the effort being pushed and spearheaded by the remaining four women artisans.

In an interview, Catherine De Mata, lead artisan at a weaving site inside the National Museum of the Philippines-Batanes in the Municipality of Uyugan, said that since 2022, they have started to resuscitate the weaving of traditional Ivatan attire for social events.

“The weaving industry here was already dead, and we just resurrected it. Even the skilled artisans lost the chance to practice their craftsmanship, so the industry died. But right now, we are recovering it to be a means of livelihood in the communities,” she said.

With De Mata being assisted by only three other artisans across Batanes, they are producing a minimal number of Ivatan attires, which are sold in markets and showcased in bazaars in Manila.

“The process and the intricacies are so hard to teach to the young ones, that’s our main problem. We have the raw materials, which are coming from the mainland. Sadly, we don’t have enough artisans for us to produce the bulk of Ivatan attires. But right now, we have a collaboration with the Batanes State College to produce our own thread. Little by little, we are reliving it,” said De Mata.

She noted that cotton was once produced in Batanes, but this stopped with the passing of the older generation of weavers.

To entice the younger generation, De Mata said they are spearheading immersion programs for senior high school students to do the aid work and eventually mold them into Batanes’ next generation of weavers.

Distinct Ivatan attire

According to the book Ivatan Attire for Social Events, Ivatan dress is made from cotton cloth — preferably locally woven.

For women, the upper garment takes the form of a topper, blazer, bolero, or blouson with bell-shaped sleeves that reach just above the waistline. The lower garment is a wrap-around skirt (locally known as inahapad) that goes down to the knee level.

The upper garment is a combination of precolonial and colonial styles worn by Ivatan women, while the inahapad is based on the traditional tapis of precolonial Ivatan women.

For men, the upper garment may be a stylized vest (locally known as kadukad) or a barong-style shirt, which may be worn with or without an undershirt. The lower garment consists of long pants.

The kadukad is based on the cut of precolonial Ivatan men's attire, while the pants follow early 20th-century styles.

The upper garments for both men and women are white or the natural color of undyed cotton. The lower garments can be in shades of blue, gray (preferably dark blue to blue-gray), or vuridaw (preferably brown or dark red).

Both upper and lower garments can be embellished with circular motifs or designs on the hemlines, created through embroidery, beadwork, or a combination of both.

The colors and design elements of the Ivatan social attire are inspired by the hues of a live dibang (flying fish), which plays an integral role in Ivatan diet and culture, particularly in catching dorado (dolphin fish) and mutin (glass beads).

The color blue, therefore, symbolizes the Ivatans’ deep maritime roots.

Vakul

The Ivatan’s are known for their traditional headdress called vakul for women, and kayani, an Ivatan traditional vest for men.

Vakul is a traditional headpiece worn by women for protection against the heat or rain Making vakul and kayani remains alive in Sabtang Island, a secluded island 40 minutes away from Basco, as they still have their Ivatan weavers there.

Each Vakul is made from shredded leaves of a Philippine date palm or vuyavuy and is intended to protect the wearer from the sun and rain.

As their tradition dictates, Ivatan women are the only ones allowed to weave the said headgear, and are passed on from generation to generation.