Salinta Monon's Story
About
Monon was born on December 12, 1920, and grew up in Bituag, Bansalan in Davao del Sur and watched her mother weave ikat traditional abaca fabric when she was a child, she asked her mother how to use the loom at age 12 and learned how to weave within a few months. She weaves a design for three to four months. In a month she can weave fabric which can be used for a single abaca tube skirt which measures 3.5 x 0.42 meters. Her favorite design is the binuwaya or crocodile which is said to be among the most difficult to weave.
At 12 she presented herself to her mother, to be taught how to weave herself. Her ardent desire to excel in the art of her ancestors enabled her to learn quickly. She developed a keen eye for traditional designs, and now, at the age of 65, she can identify the design as well as the author of a woven piece just by a glance. In a statement made by Cherry Quizon, an anthropologist, the origin of Monon’s design can be dated as early as the 1910s.
Salinta grew up in Bitaug, a place inhabited by the Bagobos. She was still a little girl when she watched her mother’s nimble hands glide over the loom, weaving “ikat,” a cloth made from abaca fibers. At 12, she asked her mother to teach her how to work the loom. In just a matter of few months, she quickly excelled in the craft. The Binuwaya, or crocodile, was her favorite design and is said to be one of the most difficult to weave.
