Plaited Vessel I — Diagonal Sash | Wounaan, Colombia
PLAIT-002
Handwoven in Colombia |★★★★★
A floor-scale plaited vessel from Colombia’s Chocó region. One of three.
Twenty-seven inches tall, woven by Yenny from werregue palm fiber split by hand. A single broad diagonal sash of plant-dyed black fiber crosses the natural ground, anchored by a fine herringbone collar at the rim. The largest of the three.
Wounaan basketry is best known in collector circles for the dense coiled vessels built over months, sometimes years. This piece comes from the older lineage: plaited construction, single-layer, scaled for presence rather than density. Both techniques live in the same hands, in the same villages. Coiled work measures in time. Plaited work measures in control.
The fiber is werregue palm, harvested from the rainforest and split into thin plaiting strands. The black is achieved with plant-based pigments from the Chocó ecosystem, fixed through repeated boiling and mineral cycles until the color is stable and the fiber pliable. That pliability is what allows the vessel to fold flat for transport and reopen into form.
Plaited vessels take less time to weave than coiled ones, but allow no margin for correction. Tension must hold across the entire surface from base to rim. The pattern, in this case a single sweeping diagonal, is not added. It is plotted in the weave itself.
This vessel can be shown in two forms. Folded inward at the rim, it reads as a rounded sculptural mass with a soft dome. Drawn upward at the rim, it opens into a classical urn with a fine herringbone collar at the top. Either form is correct. The vessel was made to do both.
Woven by Yenny, Wounaan. One of three brought back from her hands. When sold, it is gone.
Details
Dimensions: 20″ W × 27″ H (51 × 69 cm)
Material: Werregue palm fiber, plant-dyed
Origin: Colombia, Chocó region
Construction: Single-layer plaited, collapsible
Edition: One of one · SKU PLAIT-002
Woven by Wounaan artisans in Colombia's Chocó rainforest — a tradition passed through generations in one of the most biodiverse regions on earth.
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Handwoven in colombia by
Wounaan Master Weavers
No. of Artisans50+ active artists across multiple communities |
OriginChocó Region, Colombia |
Fairly Made. Community Driven.
Each Colombian Wounaan basket is purchased directly from the artist at fair prices that support families, preserve tradition, and sustain local economies.
Along the river communities of Colombia’s Chocó rainforest, Wounaan weavers continue a centuries-old tradition of crafting extraordinary handwoven baskets. Natural palm fibers are wrapped in precise stitches to form bold geometric patterns that reflect the landscape and culture of the region.
Each piece is woven entirely by hand, creating distinctive Wounaan artisan baskets valued for their precision, heritage, and sculptural beauty.
