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AHEAD OF TIME
JENNY HALL VISITS THE SIEM REAP WORKSHOPS OF ARTISANS D’ANGKOR, WHERE THE CRAFTSMANSHIP OF KHMER KINGS IS BEING PASSED THROUGH THE CENTURIES
I SPLURGED TODAY and bought myself a new head. It was long overdue and I’m hoping it will be an improvement. The wrinkles are gathering on the current model. The memory is full and the modus operandi is semi-functional.
The replacement looks promising. Her hair is elaborately styled into a permanent coiffure and her features are well proportioned. Her meditative almond eyes are continually closed, but there is not a crow’s foot to be seen. She has a calm, peaceful curl to her lips, as well as an extremely impressive lineage. “She’s a queen,” the Cambodian saleswoman informs me – nothing like a bit of blue blood in an upgrade.
STARTING TO SCULPT CAREERS
My new head was sculpted out of stone by Siem Reap’s Artisans d’Angkor. This may sound like an ancient and mystical guild requiring special handshakes and secret passwords, but it is actually a contemporary project that produces traditional Khmer handicraft s for retail. By training rural students in the ancient art and producing items of beauty – such as my new head – it has succeeded in generating excitement about the Khmer culture for a whole new audience.
Founded in 1998, Artisans d’Angkor began as a three-year project to support students from the Chantiers-Ecoles De Formation Professionnelle (CEFP), a state-run school that provides free vocational training for young, rural Cambodians who show an aptitude for handicraft s. CEFP’s goal was to enable local people to rebuild the country’s infrastructure and promote development, so initial training programmes focused on the building trades. Artisans d’Angkor was founded by the Cambodian Ministry of Education, the French Foreign Ministry and the European Union.
They wisely anticipated the growth in the tourist industry and introduced training to reproduce Angkorian statues.
The revival of the traditional Khmer craft s of silk production, stone and woodcarving, lacquer work and gilding quickly followed, and Artisans d’Angkor was born as an extension of the CEFP. The organisation offers employment and further training for those who complete CEFP courses, and provides a smooth transition from education to work.
So successfully has it grown that most recently, Artisans d’Angkor has become involved in an exciting decorative project.
A British customer with a penchant for Cambodian crafts commissioned the company to work on an old castle, La Carriere, in the Dordogne region of France. Eleven artisans flew to France in June to begin work. It appears that the craft smanship of the Khmer kings can transcend both geography and the centuries.
FROM THE PAST TO PRODUCTION
Originally supported by the European Union, Artisans d’Angkor only became a self-financing limited company in 2003.
It focuses on rural areas for two reasons: to support educationally disadvantaged young people and to avoid rural depopulation – a destabilising factor of Cambodian life.
About 40% of the company’s artisans work in the rural workshops, while the remainder are based in Siem Reap and at the Centre National de la Soie (CNS) or National Silk Centre in Puok village, about 16km away.
To guarantee quality, every item is thoroughly checked by a workshop supervisor, the master sculptor and two quality-control supervisors before the masterpiece reaches the showroom.
This ensures that the company’s three fundamental values – quality, authenticity and a strong Khmer identity – are upheld.
On completion, items receive the Artisans d’Angkor quality label.
SECRET WORKSHOP
Tucked down a narrow, dusty street in the southern part of town, the Siem Reap complex is a hidden jewel, where workshops and the boutique create a quadrangle of creative endeavour. The boutique is a low-rise, dark-terracotta building with a traditional roof. The elephant-headed Hindu god, Ganesh, nestles in the lush landscaped garden. Stone lions guard the front door and tall pottery urns of hot pink floating hibiscus grace the presentation room.
Inside, the boutique is filled with lacquer bas reliefs of the Khmer royal court, wooden carvings of dancing apsara (female spirits or nymphs), and large enigmatic stone heads. Striking lacquer panels in black and red with gold images of lotus, fish and elephants hang on the walls. Meditation-inducing statues of Khmer kings and Buddha sit quietly on tables, a slight curve to their lips as if they are amused by the surroundings. Stone bas reliefs of the Bayon faces stare into the distance, focusing on something only they can see. There are scarves of burgundy raw silk and shot silk clutch bags arranged neatly on shelves, while cushions in burnished red and amber are scattered around. Staff members answer questions in a multitude of languages and wrap items carefully for long journeys to new lands.
The five workshops, all open to the public, are light airy rooms divided according to craft , with about a dozen artisans working in each. Lee (aka Mr Pen Nak), one of the in-house English-speaking guides at the time of my visit, volunteers to show me around. In the stone-carving workshop, light pours in through the openwork lattice windows, creating shadow patterns across huge bas reliefs of devatas (deities or guardian spirits) from the Angkor complex.
The stone is predominantly sandstone from Siem Reap province, rough-hewn and then sculpted using traditional techniques. I watch by the sidelines as the artisans gather for a briefing from a master sculptor. There are currently about 686 fully trained craft smen and 130 apprentices.
“They are between 16 to 30 years old, recruited from villages around Siem Reap,” Lee informs me.
SUSTAINING THE SKILLS
Artisans d’Angkor is committed to sustainable development. Apprentices are taught to make their own tools and adapt them to their methods of working. An important part of the training involves understanding what natural resources are available. The company is also committed to fair working conditions.
“Apprentices work eight hours a day, five days a week,” Lee reports. They are guaranteed fair levels of pay, and social and medical welfare. The artisans have also formed an association called “Artisanat Khmer” that has a 20% stake in the company and a voice in decision-making.
In the woodcarving workshop, the artisans give me shy smiles. They are shaping items to be lacquered. Sitting at a workbench, a young woman cradles an object in her lap, whittling away until the graceful arms and legs of an apsara dancer emerge. The lacquer is carefully applied in layers in the adjacent workshop. Although many of the same statues are recreated, because each piece is handmade, no two faces or figures are exactly the same. Each has its own unique essence instilled in it by its creator.
As we enter another workshop, I notice that there are various signs all over the walls depicting hand signals.
“The artisans in here are deaf,” Lee explains. “They learn to sign at Krousar Thmey, a local NGO, then they join Artisans and learn to paint. Until now, Cambodia has had no standard sign language. Now they are trying to develop one.”
The women are painting delicate images of historical scenes such as traditional Khmer houses onto silk. Elephants feature widely. Each artisan prepares the bright colours using natural pigments, applies them with fine brushes, and finishes the works with India ink and gilding. The room is silent, yet full of conversation.
MAKING IT INTERNATIONAL
Since Artisans became a limited company in 2003, it has gone from strength to strength. There are now 23 on-site and 11 rural workshops. In 2005, Artisans d’Angkor participated in the Aichi World Expo in Japan. In 2006, they began producing exclusive items for the new Gallery Jayavarman VII in Paris. And this year has been an exceptional one for Artisans.
Not only did they begin the project in the south of France, but they opened a new shop within the Skyplaza at Hong Kong International Airport. Also due to open any day is another outlet at the newly constructed Angkor National Museum in Siem Reap and one at Singapore’s Changi International Airport. Artisan products are now even available through independent distributors in Poland, San Francisco and Switzerland.
The Parisian gallery was named after Jayavarman VII, the Khmer civilisation’s most famous king, which brings things back to my queenly head. All of the designs at Artisans are based on originals from the temples of Angkor. My queen is Pranhaparamita or Tara, inspired by a fragment from the Preah Khan temple (late 12th to early 13th century). She is identified with Jarasadevi, the wife of Jayavarman VII.
Pranhaparamita (Sanskrit for “perfection of wisdom”) is a symbol of intelligence, understanding and generosity. Tara (“star”), a Buddhist goddess, represents compassion, increased longevity and protection during earthly travel and spiritual journeys. She is considered the mother of all Buddha and the wife of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, statues of which have also been found at Angkor.
Carved so beautifully by the artisans, and with such a high reputation, I can’t help hoping that some of her qualities will rub off on her new guardian.
Information
Artisans d’Angkor offers regular guided Itours of both the Siem Reap workshops on Stung Thmey Street and the Angkor Silk
Farm. Tours are conducted daily from 8am to 5pm at the Angkor Silk Farm and from 7.30am to 6.30pm for the Siem Reap Workshops at Chantiers-Ecoles. There is a complimentary shuttle bus service to the silk farm if a reservation is confirmed at one of the boutiques, with daily departures from Chantiers-Ecoles at 9.30am and 1.30pm. For more information, visit www.artisansdangkor.com
STORE LOCATOR AND HOME DELIVERY
Visit Artisans d’Angkor’s boutiques at the Chantiers-Ecoles in Siem Reap and the Angkor Silk Farm in Puok, as well as at these other locations: Angkor National Museum, 968 Charles de Gaulle, Siem Reap; Angkor Cafe, opposite Angkor Wat temple, Siem Reap; Phnom Penh International Airport and Siem Reap Angkor International Airport, Departures; Hong Kong International Airport, Terminal 2 Skyplaza, Shop 170, Level 5, www.hongkongairport.com; Singapore Changi Airport, Terminal 3 (opening early 2008), www.changiairport.com. Their creations are also for sale at Gallery Jayavarman VII, 17 Rue de L’Echaudé, Paris, France, tel +33 (0)1 47 410902, www.galerie-j7.com.
Artisans d’Angkor can ship to almost any address in the world. All shipments under 60kg will be sent door-to-door international delivery by air via DHL (www.dhl.com). All shipments over 60kg will be sent by sea freight port-to-port (CIF) via SDV (www.sdv.com).
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