How would you like to live in a place where you have two choices of career: be an artist/craftsperson, or work in the rice fields?
I am writing to you from Nusa Dua near Denpasar Bali, on my 5th day of touring here. Yesterday we spent most of the day in Ubud, which is famous for its locally made arts and crafts. Driving to this town, the roads are lined with tiny open-air shops displaying stone carvings, wood carvings, paintings, glass mosaics, art studios and craft workshops. Entire villages can be dedicated to one artform. The quantity of artwork shop after shop, village after village, is staggering. These artful villages are surrounded by rice paddies… so it appears that the main career choices are between arts/crafts, and working in the fields.
On the way back to our hotel today, we passed an open air community structure where schoolchildren were receiving their instruction on Balinese dance. The boys were on stage, having a blast with their teacher, learning intricate hand gestures and arm positions. We were told that all children either learn to play a musical instrument like the Gamelan, or learn the intricate Balinese dances.
I’ve always thought that I was a little special or different because I believed since I was a child that I was an artist, and a creative person. Not everyone feels they have the opportunity to pursue that point of view as they become adults.
As we rode along these tiny village roads, and I saw all the creative talent that was expressed by the locals, I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to grow up in a community where everyone is considered to have creative talent, and everyone is encouraged to develop those talents professionally. Instead of having to go out and sell one’s art, in these communities the world comes to them, to view and purchase their work. Would I still feel special if I lived in a village of artists, where everyone paints, carves, sews, dances, plays music, or otherwise expresses themselves? Yes! Special… and lucky!
Everywhere we go, there are signs announcing ” Batiks”. We are buying armloads of beautiful sarongs – prints, batiks and ikats. They are about 2 meters long. I plan to bring them home and we’ll cut them up into a sample packet so you can have some of my scrumptious Balinese local fabrics to work into your quilts. My favorites have borders around the edges. For avid textile collectors, this place is a dream. For a designer, there is so much eye candy and design/color inspiration, it makes my head spin.
This photo above was taken yestserday, just south of Ubud here in Bali, with a view across the ravine at the steeply terraced rice paddies…and some patchwork quilts hanging in the foreground!
