earthskills gathering workshop facilitators 2023
THE HANDMADE TRUST: ISIXHOSA BASKET WEAVING AND MAT MAKING
The Handmade Trust and its team of master amaXhosa weavers is well known to this community through our regular collaborations. Those attending the basket weaving workshops (8 participants per session) will learn to create their own ingobozi (small sedge basket). You will be guided through the craft of plait weaving from starting and shaping to finishing. The mat making workshops (10 participants per session) will offer the opportunity to create your own ikukho (small sedge table mat). Here, you will be guided through the methods of using a traditional Xhosa mat loom and introduced to the different styles of mat weaving. In both of these introductory workshops, you will learn the stories behind these ancient crafts as well as the materials used. We also look at the traditional knowledge that goes into harvesting and preparing the plant used in this style of weaving.
Gabriel Powell: green woodwork
Gabriel has been practicing making since his early twenties and began applying the principles of permaculture to furniture making about 7 or 8 years ago. He has done an apprenticeship in the UK with furniture maker and philosopher Nick Karey, and has a masters degree in Ecological Design Thinking from Schumacher College in Devon. He has also dabbled in ceramics as well as the wild world of prop fabrication for the film industry. “In this workshop, participants will practice the art of the bodger. In teams (2 teams of 3 to 5 people each), we will make traditional greenwood furniture – a great option for friends or family members keen to craft together. We will explore the properties of greenwood as we move from tree to stool. We will also explore the tools of traditional green woodwork: the froe, the axe, the drawknife, the saw and the auger.”
Craige Q7 Beckett: San custodian
Q7 is a bushman healer and survival guide with extensive experience in agroecology and indigenous arts and crafts. He is a humanitarian actively working as an indigenous youth mentor and San youth developer across southern Africa. He is also the founder of IYX Africa and Indigicures. Q7 will bring his teachings and offerings, in his capacity as San custodian, to the Earthskills Gathering 2023, bringing to our awareness some of the original lifeways – and our oneness with nature – that form such an integral part of our collective human heritage. Workshop participants will gain knowledge and insights that touch on bushman culture and customs, including cosmology and an understanding of landscapes and learning from nature, as well as a traditional approach to healing (diagnosis and detection, as taught by the elders, and the use of the mouth bow as a form of electromagnetic therapy).
Summer Human: leathercraft
Having worked with leather since the age of 10, and professionally for the past 15 years, Summer is a leathercrafter who truly respects the lives of the animals whose skins are used in this way. “I like to use traditional hand-stitching techniques as these match the lifespan of the leather itself.” Earthskills Gathering workshop participants (10 per session) will have the opportunity to make barefoot shoes, a leather-bound journal or a drawstring bag during this event.
CONNOR TREMBATH: WOODCARVING
A carpenter by trade, whittling and woodcarving have been a source of joy and meditation for Connor for many years. Workshop participants (10 per session) can expect to create one item of medium complexity in a session, like a small spoon, a little figure (such as an animal or plant), or a 2D relief carving (of a scene). Multiple sessions will open up the possibility to create something bigger, or more complex. We will be using axes, chisels, whittling knives of various sizes, and detailing/incising knives during the process. One of the greatest joys of woodcarving is to feel the timber that the incredible woody creatures have left behind.
@barefootcarpenter | Email: barefootcarpenter@logbuilding.co.za
Dr Bruce Copley: friction fire and the musical oak
An acknowledged keeper of the Original Fire in South Africa, Bruce has shared this mystical, alchemical process with thousands of people both locally and abroad. Arguably one of the most significant and important traditions and practices of the past, the discovery of how to make fire by friction occurred 1.5-million years ago. “Fireshop” participants (up to 80 per session) will have the opportunity to create fire in the original way, using the bow drill method. In addition, Bruce will bring together the community, nature and music in an offering using the oak tree acorn cupule. This process reminds us that music was an integral part of all indigenous and ancient societies.
Roze Meyer: children’s guide (ages 3 to 7)
An experienced children's eco workshop facilitator, Roze brings to the Earthskills Gathering a passion for connecting children to nature and earthskills, and for growing a resilient future for the younger generation. She is a parent, a former Waldorf educator and first-aid trained, and will be offering nature-based crafts and activities for the younger members of our community.
GERVAISE CHRISTIE: FELT MAKING
Gervaise is an artist specialising in nature crafts, a mindful movement and body works therapist and a mother of two wild ones. Known for her beautifully crafted and whimsical creations, Gervaise also runs felt-making workshops and shows others how to create the practical wearable artworks she has come to truly love: slippers, hats, winter gloves, vests, baskets and bags, and even interior decorations like light fittings and wall hangings. All made from wool – hypoallergenic, non-toxic and deliciously fun to work with. Felt-making workshop participants (6 per session) will create fold-over pouches using the wet-felting technique.
Email: earthstomper@hotmail.com
MARSHALL RINQUEST: FOOD AS MEDICINE
Marshall is a well-known and respected figure in sustainable agriculture, environmental education and community upliftment projects. Food as Medicine workshop participants (up to 30, for one session only) can expect an informative, hands-on experience that looks at many aspects of our food systems, both wild and cultivated, informed by Marshall’s extensive experience in permaculture and his work in building awareness of the medicinal value inherent in both homegrown and foraged foods.
DANIEL BAUM: CHILDREN’S GUIDE (AGES 8 TO 14)
Daniel of Wildways will be offering activities for children aged 8 and over at the Earthskills Gathering 2023. Wildways started in 2013, focusing on the 8Shields approach of the Wilderness Awareness School, developing a more intimate awareness of and connection to our more natural and wild environments. During this event, Daniel will be offering games and exercises that help foster the ABCs: awareness, belonging, connection.
KEEGAN WEST: FORGING
A full-time blacksmith and bladesmith, Keegan brings with him not only years of forging experience and know-how, but also his farm-style rivet forge with hand-cranked blower. Although spaces at the forge will be limited (5 per session), workshop participants will get a good general forging experience, focusing on basic skills and techniques. “My aim is to provide workshop participants with a good general forging experience, focusing on basic forge skills and techniques. I would like to offer a choice of several items to forge, namely cutlery (knives, forks, spoons), household hardware (door handles, coat hooks, shelving brackets) or basic tools ( edged knives or chisels, holdfasts or fire tools).
Right Mukore: woodcarving
Right is an artist and sculptor using wood as his medium. Well known for his poetic craftsmanship and interpretation of wood in its natural form, Right will guide workshop participants (around 10 per session) through the making of bowls, sculptures and more. He brings to his workshops not only an in-depth knowledge of his craft and of wood as a material, but also a unique outlook on life that touches all who carve with him. “When you work with wood, you feel something. It has life in it. Energy.”
078 613 2747
Or visit his outdoor studio at Montebello Design Centre in Newlands, Cape Town
JESSE PESTANA: TRADITIONAL ARCHERY
Jesse has been practicing archery for about 17 years and teaching for five years. “I’ve always loved archery, ever since I made my first bow as a boy, and I love teaching people who are eager to learn. I teach a very traditional style of shooting mixed with some of my own skill that I have adapted over the years.” Not only does this activity speak to our ancient hunter-gatherer past, it is an incredible way to de-stress and bring us into presence. Fun to try and beneficial for all ages!
POP-UP WORKSHOP FACILITATORS 2023
HANNES BREYTENBACH: stargazing and night sky APPRECIATION
Hannes is a final year astrophysics Phd at UCT. Passionate about astronomy and sharing the wonders of the night sky with people, Hannes will be bringing a few small telescopes to the Earthskills Gathering 2023, facilitating stargazing sessions in the early evenings (weather permitting) and teaching people about the night sky (identifying objects, navigation etc.). He’ll also share some of the fascinating and beautiful origin stories from our local ancestors, aligning these with our modern understanding of the cosmos and our place in it.
TUMELO KUENA: TRADITIONAL AND INNOVATIVE USES OF COW DUNG
Tumelo Kuena is a herbalist and doula with a deep appreciation for nature’s healing powers and the sacredness of life’s transformative moments, and will be sharing cultural stories and knowledge of the many uses of cow dung at the Earthskills Gathering 2023.
“Molweni. I'm Tumi, and I'm thrilled to be a facilitator at the upcoming Earthskills Gathering, where we will explore the traditional and innovative uses of cow dung, connecting with its rich cultural heritage and discovering how it can be harnessed as a natural and renewable resource for sustainable living. I look forward to our journey of exploration and creativity. See you at the workshop!”
Mohope Tribal Creations
JOANNA TOMKINS: NATURE CLAY PLAY
Clay artist Joanna Tomkins facilitates 'deep ecology', creating experiences that honour the grief we feel for the world of separation we live in, and kindling the knowledge that we are powerful collaborative beings that inter-exist with all beings in the web of life. Through this Nature Clay Play process, you'll visit simple techniques to make organic shapes using nature as inspiration. The pieces can be dried in the sun or at the fire, or recycled back to clay. This offering brings awareness to clay as a medium to connect to our imagination and our inter-being. Suitable for children and adults.
Joanna Tomkins | Gaia Speaking