Mitkeila Teucama: Second-Generation Wounaan Weaver
Meet the Maker · Majé, Darién
Mitkeila Teucama
Second-generation Wounaan weaver from Majé. Geometric designs. Six hours a day at the coil, every fiber prepared by her own hand.
Mitkeila Teucama, Majé, Darién, Panama.
Born in 1992 in the remote village of Majé in Panama's Darién rainforest, Mitkeila Teucama is a second-generation Wounaan basket weaver. She learned her craft from her mother, who taught her both technique and a love for the patterns and process that define Wounaan coiled basketry.
Every step done by hand, root to coil
Mitkeila began weaving at age 17 and now balances her days between her art and raising her four children, a role with real status in Wounaan culture. She prefers geometric designs and often works up to six hours a day, weaving while her children are at school and her husband is at work.
All of Mitkeila's materials are harvested, stripped, and dyed by her own hand. Some weavers trade for prepared palm or pigment; she chooses to complete each step herself, from gathering chunga (Astrocaryum standleyanum) and naguala palms to producing natural dyes from roots and leaves.
"She does every step herself."
— Jen, RFB Woven ArtWhy she stays in Majé
Some Wounaan families move closer to Panama City for education or work. Mitkeila prefers village life, surrounded by her seven siblings, her extended family, and the forest that supplies her materials.
Her baskets carry the patience and independence of a weaver who knows every fiber from the moment she cut it from the forest.
— Jen
Frequently asked questions about Mitkeila Teucama
Who is Mitkeila Teucama?
Mitkeila Teucama is a second-generation Wounaan basket weaver from Majé, a remote village in Panama's Darién rainforest. Born in 1992, she learned to weave from her mother and began at age 17. She favors geometric designs and weaves up to six hours a day, harvesting and dyeing every fiber herself rather than trading for prepared materials.
How does Mitkeila Teucama prepare her materials?
Mitkeila completes every stage of preparation herself. She harvests chunga (Astrocaryum standleyanum) and naguala palms from the forest around Majé, strips and splits the fibers by hand, and produces her own natural dyes from local roots and leaves.
Who else weaves in Majé, Darién?
Majé is a Wounaan village in Panama's Darién rainforest. RFB Woven Art works with several master weavers there: Mitkeila Teucama (geometric), Argelida Donisabe (grasshopper motif), Lubecia Membache (pawprint), Sara Ginguimia (feather), Fredy Ginguimia (pawprint, florals), and Yoli Ginguimia.
Why do some Wounaan families stay in Majé?
Most Wounaan villages in the Darién only offer schooling through sixth grade, so families seeking high school or university often move toward Panama City. Mitkeila chooses to stay in Majé, surrounded by extended family and the forest that supplies her materials.
