If you shop for fair trade artisanal handiwork items, you’ll know there’s one big element normal fair trade stores are missing – the artists themselves. For the first time, Aggies are bringing the women of Vida Nueva, a women’s cooperative from an indigenous Mexican community called Teotitlán del Valle, to Bryan/College Station to sell their own products. Their handmade art, leather bags, wool rugs and more use patterns and techniques that have been passed down for generations. And over the six days they spend here, they want to meet you!
Leading this project is Dr. William Brown, the Bush School’s Director of the Center for Nonprofits and Philanthropy at A&M. “All the profits and benefits are going back to them and the work that they do,” Brown says. “That’s a pretty significant market opportunity that we provide access to.”
This pilot artisan visit for TAMU’s International Leadership Experience begins April 4, when the women arrive in College Station. During their stay, they will host four main public events to sell their products and meet the community.
You can start shopping on Tuesday, April 5, at Lakewalk’s The Local from 4-7 p.m. On Wednesday, an Arts Council of the Brazos Valley event will display the artisans’ artwork in their gallery from 6-8 p.m. Art shows continue on Friday, April 8, at the Degart 2022 Gallery from 5-8 p.m. in Bryan.
The main event lasts all-day Saturday at the Bryan Street Art Festival in Downtown Bryan from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Brown says that this large art show may allow the women to sell out before the night is over, amounting to up to $15,000 in sales for them.
In Teotitlán del Valle, weaving is a skill previously reserved for men. Vida Nueva helps to preserve the community’s heritage and create economic opportunities for women, which the International Leadership Experience contributes to by providing travel, customers, and connections. “They’re not just a business,” Brown says of the women. “They’re really not only a livelihood, but are also concerned about the communities that they’re coming from.”
Along with selling their work during their visit, the artists will be networking with TAMU students and staff in architecture and business programs. Depending on the connections made, Brown says this could become an annual event, where artisans from multiple groups can come together for major marketing and social gains.
When the women leave on Sunday, it might not be “goodbye.” Brown plans for the program to equip students to visit the artisans in their home communities. With future research, students may understand the communities enough to solve major social and economic problems.
Of course an artisan market is already perfectly entertaining, and you’ll probably find your new favorite artwork, pillows, and tote bags. But even more, next week’s events are the start of a project with big aspirations and global impact.
“We want everybody to win,” Brown says. “We really want it to be a thing where we work together to try to benefit the artisans, their communities, the students, and the community here in Bryan / College Station.”
