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Tumi, which sells Latin American handicrafts in
four shops and supplies 500 others, has always been
keen to promote the continent and its culture.
Mo Fini of Tumi brought the Bolivian group
Rumillajta to Britain in l984 to sing at the
Edinburgh Festival and the Welsh eisteddfod. He had
their music recorded on the Tumi label which has
now extended its range from the pipes and flutes of
the Andes to the salsa rhythms of Colombia.
The following year he brought two Peruvian
weavers for an exhibition at the Commonwealth
Institute entitled The Weavers of Ancient Peru; and
he wrote and published a colourfully illustrated
book with the same name. He continues to organise
exhibitions on Latin American themes in Tumi’s own
shops and other venues.
His many black-and-white photographs are
collected in a touring exhibition, Portrait of
Latin America. This opened last February at the
Royal Photographic Society in Bath and will tour to
London, Devon, Liverpool and Southampton in 1992.
Rather than the poverty and violence of Latin
America, it shows the hope, laughter and strength
of the people. The photographs are also published
in a book with the same title, in which Mo Fini
writes of his adventures and encounters.
A comprehensive book on Latin American
handicrafts is now being produced. This will use
the vast range of colour images taken by Mo Fini
over the years, plus new black-and-white
photographs. It will present to a wider audience
the knowledge gleaned from so many visits.
Exhibitions planned for l992 include the Pre-
Hispanic Gods of Mexico, Textiles from Guatemala
and Erotic Art in pre-Hispanic Peru and Mexico.
Holding these exhibitions in the Tumi galleries
gives customers a deeper insight into the
handicrafts and their cultural background.
Last year came the first issue of an annual Tumi
Magazine, with articles on the tumi knives of Peru,
on the Ecuadorians who make balsawood parrots, on
an old man still using the Incas’ accounting
system, and on the music of the Andes, illustrated
with Mo Fini’s photographs.
The
second issue of the magazine is being printed in
both English and Spanish. The Spanish version will
be given free of charge to craftspeople in Latin
America. It aims not only to increase awareness of
Latin American cultural issues in the West but also
to unite and increase communication among the
craftspeople.
For education, Tumi has been filming short
videos featuring Latin American craftsmen, customs
and festivities since l986. Mo Fini directs, edits
and produces them with Lucy Davies, Tumi’s
full-time educational and cultural officer. The
most recent features the Day of the Dead festival
in Mexico and is being shown in the London shop as
part of a major Day of the Dead exhibition.
For l992 two documentary films of broadcasting
standard are being planned, featuring isolated
communities in Peru. They aim to show the strength
of these communities and their independence from
the outside world.
All the videos can be hired by schools and
colleges at a nominal rate. Teachers often hire
them with school packs containing Tumi handicrafts
and background information about the people who
make them and the countries they live in. The
education department also tries where possible to
meet teachers’ individual requests. These maybe for
other handicrafts or for interviews, slide shows or
lectures.
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