George Tancredo
Chronicle Pepperpot September 20, 2015
XXI
- The Master Balata Craftsman
T A piece made to mimic ‘Kanima buck’
Master “Balata” craftsman George Tancredo
HE Master “Balata” craftsman George Tancredo and his assistant, Guy Fredericks, both from the Macushi village of Nappi in North Rupununi, describe their balata craft as a sustainable, non-timber pursuit. In an exclusive interview, Tancredo allowed the Pepperpot to pry into the history of his work with balata, which turned out to be quite colourful. The Master Balata craftsman, as he is commonly referred to, explained that when he was 13, he started fashioning pieces from balata. He has been at it for 46 years. At present he still lives in Nappi. He said his craft takes patience, something that today’s youth lack. It was in 1977 that he came to the city and his work was offered some exposure and he received from the relevant ministry a Certificate of Excellence in balata craft. For three and a half years he was craft teacher at schools at Nappi, Parishara, Moco Moco and St. Ignatius schools. “When I left school around the age of 16 I joined the persons in the bush and started bleeding balata. “Seven years I did the job after I left school and slowly I got back into making craft from balata.” He explained that as a young adult how easy it was for him to ‘bleed balata’ but his ss ce pro g craftin A display of part of the love for craft-making made him return to this trade. Tancredo explained that during his earlier years only a few persons were interested and at that time a piece of craft was sold for some $5. “In one month you might collect between $20 to $30.” He crafted balata trees, animals and persons grating cassava. He started crafting balata pieces in 1998. In the beginning it took him two weeks to complete one piece of craft and he was paid just $200 for it. These are the things, he stressed that can be very discouraging but “I looked at the long term benefits of this type of craft making.” Marketing and sales presented a challenge. “If we ship craft to the USA we would have to wait about three months for our money since there was no banking service available in Lethem at the time and there was and still is no internet access in Nappi Village.” He further explained that in those days the only phone service was the landline service that was available in Lethem and he also noted that the group was not familiar with Georgetown. “So all these issues presented a hindrance in getting our money.” Fredericks said this type of craft making produces a sustainable non-timber products. “We don’t destroy the environment to extract the raw material.” Explaining the process, Fredericks noted, that balata milk is harvested once a year just after the rainy season in June. The Bullet Wood trees that was harvested will be given a few years before it is harvested again. He is currently fulfilling an order by Sterling Products for 1200 pieces of craft. “This is a very huge order for me; it’s not a craft that we can mass produce we have to do each piece individually.” Previously, he explained not much was done by the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples to assist the group in the marketing of their craft. “They (ministry) would bring us out when there is an expo and that was all.” But he remains optimistic that things will get better because now he will be able to display his products as well as show how the products are created. The Balata products are on display at the National Gallery of Art at the Castellani House until September 30.