Argelida Donisabe: 35 Years of Wounaan Weaving
Meet the Maker · Majé, Darién & Panama City
Argelida Donisabe
Wounaan master weaver. Thirty-five years at the coil. The only weaver we know who tucks a grasshopper into her florals.
Argelida Donisabe, Majé, Darién, Panama.
Argelida Donisabe has been weaving for over 35 years. A master Wounaan artist from the village of Majé in the Darién rainforest, she now splits her time between her home in the forest and a small Wounaan community on the outskirts of Panama City, part of a growing network of Wounaan families that move between the two.
A floral basket, with a small joke tucked inside
Argelida first learned to weave after visiting a friend and falling in love with the beauty of her baskets. She soon took up the practice herself and later taught all three of her sisters to weave. Her introduction to the art came the way it usually does in Wounaan villages: through friendship and family, hand to hand.
While some weavers prefer to work in a group setting, Argelida creates in solitude. She finds focus in the quiet, purchasing and dyeing her own palm rather than joining in the larger collective gatherings that often accompany fiber preparation. Her designs began with classic geometric motifs, but over the years she developed a signature: floral baskets that often feature a small grasshopper, an unexpected detail meant to bring joy. She is the only weaver we know who consistently includes the grasshopper in this way.
"The grasshopper is hers."
— Jen, RFB Woven ArtThree sisters at the coil, education for the next generation
Argelida's income supports both her household in Majé and her extended family near Panama City. Her baskets have paid for higher education for her children and relatives, which she counts among the most concrete results of a life spent at the coil.
— Jen
Frequently asked questions about Argelida Donisabe
Who is Argelida Donisabe?
Argelida Donisabe is a master Wounaan basket weaver from Majé in Panama's Darién rainforest, with over 35 years of weaving experience. She splits her time between Majé and a small Wounaan community on the outskirts of Panama City. Her signature is the floral basket with a small grasshopper motif, a detail she includes for joy.
What is the grasshopper motif in Wounaan basketry?
The grasshopper motif is Argelida Donisabe's signature. She works it into her floral baskets as a small unexpected detail meant to bring joy. Argelida is the only Wounaan weaver RFB Woven Art knows of who consistently includes the grasshopper in this way, making it a personal trademark rather than a traditional community-wide motif.
Did Argelida teach her family to weave?
Yes. Argelida Donisabe learned to weave from a friend whose baskets she admired, and she went on to teach all three of her sisters the craft. Her weaving income now supports both her household in Majé and her extended family near Panama City, including funding higher education for her children and relatives.
Who else weaves in Majé?
Majé is a Wounaan village in Panama's Darién rainforest that produces some of the country's finest basketry. RFB Woven Art works with several master weavers there: Argelida Donisabe (grasshopper motif), Lubecia Membache (pawprint), Sara Ginguimia (feather), Fredy Ginguimia (pawprint, florals), and Yoli Ginguimia. Many Majé weavers also keep a foothold in a Wounaan community on the outskirts of Panama City.
