For weeks now, we have been admiring Pua Kumbu at the Textile Tales of Pua Kumbu exhibit in Kuala Lumpur. We have been describing our journey to discover it, the trip to the longhouse, some of the process…Maybe it is time we focus a little bit on the weavers. They are the stars of the Pua Kumbu world after all. I want to start with one of my personal favourites. The sweet grandma next door, Mula anak Jamba.

In spite of her age, this wonderful lady is one of the most productive weavers at the Rumah Gare longhouse. One of four siblings, she picked up Pua Kumbu weaving from her mother when she was very young. She sometimes replicates old Pua patterns and has a very wide range of motifs she can portray. On a few occasions, she has participated in weaving competitions. She is often helped by her husband, Jepon, who can carry the yarn during ngirit. Jepon is a typical Iban man, his body completely covered in tattoos, done the old way (with a hammer and a stick with 9 ink needles at the end). The tattoos tell stories about his life. Others are there for protection, like the flower that resembles the eggplant inflorescence

that older Iban men wear on the front side of their shoulders. The tattoo on the neck means Jepon has proved his value as a warrior in his time. He is one of the nicest people at the longhouse. Although communicating with him is difficult (he is a bit hard of hearing and speaks only Iban), he was one of the first persons to try to befriend me by talking about big knives (duku’).
Mula is also helped by her sister, Nurie. Nurie (born in 1938) had been weaving from a young age as well, but now less so after an accident left her visually impaired. Like her older sister, Mula has 4 children. She has passed on some of her skills to at least one of them. During our first visit to Rumah Gare, while checking her Identity Card, we noticed that her birthday was coming up. Although with the older Iban, their papers may not reflect their actual birthday and age, we had a little surprise for Mula and celebrated her birthday in the social space of the longhouse, the hallway (ruai). The sweet grandma that she is, she was first shy and reluctant to accept. But in the end we had some quality time together.

Some of the patterns she weaves include: Surik Ai, Bujang Malaya, Nabau Ai (water serpent), Jambatan Gantung Nanga Panggau and Abang Bujang Menyangga. (I hope all the spellings are correct)
Some of these works are on display at our exhibit, at University of Malaya Art Gallery.