A life of work in a single line

The rattan splits into strips no wider than two millimetres. The weaver works without measuring — the tension in her fingers is the gauge. She has done this since she was nine.

The workshop is open to the road. Motorbikes pass. Children run through. The weaver does not look up. Her hands continue. The tray she is making will take two days. She makes three a week.

The rattan is sourced from a forest cooperative two provinces away. The cooperative manages harvest cycles so the plant can regenerate. It is a slow system, which suits the work.