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NEWS: Le festin d'Eva, la Passion de la Vannerie. Actes Sud 2019.
This book is about contemporary basketmakers and weaving artists, and the state of art within basketry the last 30 years.
A description of weaving projects, events and dialogue.
The results of workshops and collaboration with eminent weavers in Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Finally, there is a HOW to Do a specific start of the spiral weave introduced to me in Burkina Faso.
The book has been published in English and will be published in English in 2020.
Mary Butcher, MBE from England presents Festin d’Eva, La passion de la Vannerie in the following way:
Eva and I first met in the mid 1990’s when she came down to Canterbury to see the person who had written ‘Willow Work’ and had travelled extensively in parts of Eastern Europe very soon after the earlier political changes. She invited me to teach in her workshop and introduce English techniques to the bourgeoning basket scene in Denmark. This I then did, with others, several times a year for a decade or more and was able to see how her basketry and mine developed in parallel but came together at big events and exhibitions in our homelands and elsewhere. While I concentrated on big international touring exhibitions, Eva instituted teachings and large gatherings at Vissinggaard where many basketmakers from all over Europe, and later beyond, came to exchange knowledge of technique, history, and their personal stories in a very exciting way.
She has been rich in ideas, imagining seemingly unrealistic, large scale possibilities, which have depended on her own creative energy and that of many others, encouraging and including helpers in a wide variety of rolls, a skill in itself. Alongside this she has been an excellent administrator for these projects, hard working herself, with attention to detail plus a plethora of ideas to be implemented alongside the main events. She has been seen regularly clutching a long ‘To do’ list, then systematically ticking things off. Audience experience has been diverse and extraordinary, all of us seeing and learning so much and feeling part of a European whole with value in the craft community. She has been involved in my projects too, exhibiting and coming to Conferences and Openings here, to meet a generation of my UK colleagues and friends. I, and many others, have had our horizons extended mentally, physically and with personal contact. It has been very stimulating in so many ways.
Now Eva’s attention has turned to Baskets4life and her Africa projects. She has used the same qualities of imagination and hard work to implement the group, with their wonderful skill set, for trips, exhibitions and events, all contributing in their own ways to make a wonderful whole. Her regular connections with parts of Africa are now increasing our knowledge of the histories, techniques and possibilities there. Being a close colleague and friend, I have watched much of her basket story unfold and have been educated and stretched through that involvement in a variety of ways. I read her story of this divers but focused life, a record of the development of basketmaking across Europe and beyond, with great interest.
Eva is the manager of Vissinggaard and was educated as a teacher. Eva has worked
with basketry since 1983. She has taught basketry and organized courses
full-time since 1989.
Eva has exhibited in France, Germany, Holland, Canada, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland,
Scotland, Ireland and Denmark
as well as participated in craftfairs in KIC in Århus (Denmark), Risør in Norway
and Vallabregues, France. In 2003, 2004, and 2005 Eva Seidenfaden has exhibited
in the Greenhouses in the Botanic Gardens of Århus as well as Copenhagen, Denmark.
Eva travels around the world to all sorts of basketry festivals, symposiums and
get-togethers, she meets with fascinating and interesting personalities within
basketry in order to gain knowledge, techniques and inspiration for the
willow-teaching.
Eva has initiated Baskets4Life. Baskets4Life
consists of ten basket makers and designers from Denmark.
Eva and Baskets4life is planning the Big Willow and Basketry Day - Revival and Final taking place on May 7 and 8, 2016, at Vissinggaard.
Lately part of her attention has been focused on spiral basketry from Dordogne in
France and Burkina Faso in Africa. She teaches these and other
techniques world wide.
The book "The Art of Basketry - The Perigord Technique
and Tradition" was published in 2003, and it describes these techniques.
Since 2006, Eva has been very involved in working with women and weaving in Burkina Faso.
She has set ahead a production of shopping baskets.
The name of the project is Yajibelena. Contact Eva.
A later challenge has been a weaving project in the Northern Province in Zambia. The project
is funded by Lumwana Mining Industry with focus on designing and weaving, creating new jobs
and turnover for local basket makers. The project was initiated with Ane Lyngsgaard from Denmark.
The organisation of the project is run by Josephine Makondo from Luwaka Enterprises Ltd.
The Ingcebethu programme in Zimbabwe uses contemporary design
and collaboration between Danish and Zimbabwean basket weavers to create a basketry dialogue
and increase livelihood opportunities. The exchange includes field workshops in Zimbabwe as
well as travel to Denmark by key weavers and members from Lupane Women's Centre. The programme
ran from 2014 to 2016. The programme was organized by The New Basket Workshop in
South Africa and Lupane Women's Centre in Zimbabwe.
Tatinga is the name of a basketry collaboration between Ane Lyngsgaard, myself and Mumwa Craft Ass. in Mongo in Western Province in Zambia in 2016.
Tatinga is the local word for weaverbird. The designs of the baskets are inspired by the random weave of the weaverbird.
Tatinga baskets were launched at ZADS (Zambian Art and Design Show) in Lusaka in November 2016.
In 2017, a new project will start with Mumwa Craft Ass. og Nzito (interior design centre and outlet in Lusaka), led by Nicola Swinnerton and 3 instructors including Anelma Savolainen from Finland, Ane Lyngsgaard and myself from Denmark.
The project is sponsored by the Finnish Embassy in Lusaka.
The project funded by the Finnish Embassy in Lusaka ended in March 2019. Everybody involved were pleased with the course and result of the joint efforts. 20 masterweavers from the Mongu area passed on their new techniques and insight in the tatinga weave on to other 200weavers and the 10 rush weavers taught another 100 women in the rush products. The basketry is marketed through Mumwa Craft Association in Mongo.
Imbali Visual Literacy Project in Johannesburg in South Africa ran a 2 week basketry course using recycles materials.Imbali offers training programs for youth and adults toward income-generation, in which creative potential could be developed toward productive and constructive careers in craft and design. The school offers a 3- year program for young talents in art, graphics, jewelry, pottery and textiles. Basketry techniques was new and Ane Lyngsgaard and I spent 2 demanding, inspiring weeks. There was a great interest in our prototypes made from telephone wire and packing tape.
We hope we have left a lasting interest for basketry techniques and that we have laid seeds for new products.
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