Meet the People Keeping 15 Fascinating Traditions Alive | Still Standing Marathon

Business Insider・2 minutes read

An 86-year-old baker in Greece makes phyllo dough by hand, preserving traditional techniques despite competition from machine-made products. Various artisans worldwide face challenges but remain dedicated to preserving age-old traditions and cultural heritage.

Insights

  • Yurios Hatsaperaskos, an 86-year-old baker in Greece, handmakes phyllo dough for Greek pastries like baklava, showcasing a rare artisanal skill in a world of machine-made products.
  • Artisans like Muhammad, Ashok, and Atif are dedicated to preserving traditional crafts despite challenges like declining demand and environmental issues, adapting to modern times while safeguarding cultural heritage.
  • The Nablus Soap Company in the West Bank employs traditional methods to produce soap, facing challenges in a dwindling industry but maintaining craftsmanship through hand-painted designs and unique processes.

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Recent questions

  • How is phyllo dough made?

    Phyllo dough is made by mixing flour, water, and salt, rolling it out, shaping it into disks, and then stretching it until it's tissue-thin. Each layer is covered in linen to maintain moisture and elasticity.

  • What is rogan art?

    Rogan art involves using castor oil as a base for paint to create intricate designs by floating paint over fabric using a metal rod and freehand techniques. It was once popular in India but faced decline due to industrial textiles.

  • What is papyrus paper?

    Papyrus paper is made from strips of papyrus plant harvested by hand, soaked, compressed, and dried to create paper. It is a dying craft in Egypt, preserved by artisans like Atif in a village where the plant is nearly extinct.

  • How are Panama hats made?

    Panama hats are made through a laborious process recognized by UNESCO, involving weaving straw fibers to create the hat. The craft is a daily practice in Ecuador, with weavers facing challenges like reduced demand and higher living costs.

  • What is parchment making?

    Parchment making is a laborious process dating back to 2500 BC, involving soaking, de-hairing, rinsing, dyeing, stretching, and sanding animal skin to create a durable writing material. It was used for ancient documents and is preserved by conservators for various purposes.

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Summary

00:00

Artisans Preserve Traditional Crafts Amid Modern Challenges

  • Making phyllo by hand can take up to four hours, used in Greek cuisine like baklava, with 86-year-old Yurios Hatsaperaskos being one of the few bakers in Greece still making it manually.
  • Yurios focuses on the tourist trade, employing only his wife Katarina and his son Paris Guevas in their half-century-old bakery in Rithimno, Crete.
  • The phyllo dough process involves mixing flour, water, and salt, rolling it out, shaping it into disks, and then stretching it until it's tissue-thin, with each layer covered in linen to maintain moisture and elasticity.
  • Despite competition from machine-made phyllo, Yurios also makes katafi, a shredded pastry, which is more labor-intensive and sells for less.
  • Gafford, an engineer turned rogan artist, uses castor oil as the base for his paint, creating intricate designs by floating paint over fabric using a metal rod and freehand techniques.
  • Rogan art, once popular in India, faced decline due to industrial textiles, but Gafford has brought it to an international level, earning awards and recognition.
  • Biddi art, a metalworking craft from India, involves an eight-step process using molten metals, chiseling, and a special soil from a fort in Bidar, with Muhammad being one of the last artisans keeping the tradition alive.
  • Ashok Kumar, a traditional diya maker in Delhi, uses clay and cow dung to create lamps for the Hindu festival of Diwali, facing challenges like low prices, air pollution, and competition from electric lights.
  • Atif in Egypt harvests papyrus by hand, employing a team to cut, soak, compress, and dry the strips to create papyrus paper, preserving a dying craft in a village where the plant is nearly extinct.
  • Despite challenges like declining demand and environmental issues, artisans like Muhammad, Ashok, and Atif are determined to keep their age-old traditions alive, adapting to modern challenges while preserving their cultural heritage.

29:18

Reviving Ancient Crafts in Changing Times

  • Saeed Tarahan transitioned from farming to becoming an artist, incorporating ancient Egyptian motifs in his work.
  • Egyptians invented papyrus paper over 5,000 years ago, replacing clay tablets and using it for various purposes.
  • Papyrus paper nearly went extinct in Egypt by the early 1800s but was revived by an art professor and engineer in the 1970s.
  • Saeed's cousin, an art professor, played a pivotal role in reviving the papyrus industry in Egypt.
  • The Arab Spring uprisings in 2011 led to a significant drop in tourism in Egypt, impacting the market for papyrus paper.
  • Salama, a dyer in Egypt, uses traditional methods to dye yarn, facing challenges from industrial competition and the pandemic.
  • Chinese investors plan to construct one of the largest textile zones in Egypt, impacting small-scale operations like Salama's.
  • Juan Diego Hernandez Cortez in Mexico harvests salt by hand, preserving a tradition that dates back over 2,000 years.
  • Juan's efforts to maintain the artisanal salt industry in Mexico involve forming a brand with other producers and adapting to pandemic challenges.
  • Viviana Alaves in Mexico continues her family's candle-making tradition, innovating designs and selling candles to sustain the business amidst changing times.

57:23

Traditional crafts face challenges in modern economy.

  • Panama hats became popular in the 19th century when they were shipped overseas and worn across the Panama Canal.
  • The craft of making Panama hats is recognized by UNESCO and is a daily practice in Ecuador.
  • Authentic Panama hats sold online in the US and Europe can cost over $50, but the weavers association sells them for $14.
  • Many weavers have left the craft due to higher living costs, with only 25 remaining out of the original 124 in 2005.
  • The COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the situation for Panama hat weavers, with reduced visitors impacting sales.
  • Juan Jose Paredes runs a hat museum in Cuenca, selling hats made by artisans in rural villages, but falling demand has led to less work for weavers.
  • Parchment making dates back to 2500 BC and is a laborious process involving soaking, de-hairing, rinsing, dyeing, stretching, and sanding.
  • Parchment was used for famous ancient documents and has been preserved by conservators for mending manuscripts and restoring missing pages.
  • Jesse Meyer revived his family tannery business by introducing parchment making, leading to a niche market for conservators and designers.
  • Arion Press in San Francisco preserves traditional bookmaking methods dating back to the 1800s, creating handmade books that can take years to produce and cost up to $10,000.

01:18:36

Traditional Craftsmanship Preserved in Unique Businesses

  • Naomi makes the first mochi daily as an offering for gods and ancestors.
  • Naomi and her employees work on a woven mat covered in roasted soybean powder to prepare the mochi.
  • They measure thumb-sized pieces of mochi to stick on skewers for roasting.
  • Naomi uses binchotan, a high-quality oak charcoal, to roast the mochi.
  • The aburimochi is dipped into miso sauce while warm.
  • 11 skewers and a cup of green tea cost 500 yen.
  • Ichiwa was founded in 994 during a time of epidemics in Kyoto.
  • Naomi is the 25th okami to run Ichiwa, succeeding her aunt 13 years ago.
  • The shop faced challenges during the coronavirus pandemic, closing for nearly two months in 2020.
  • Naomi hopes the next generation of her family will continue the business, but there is no set succession plan.
  • Nablus Soap Company in the West Bank uses olive oil, baking soda, and water to make soap.
  • The soap is cooked in a stainless steel pot and poured onto the floor to cool.
  • Workers stamp the soap with the Nablus Soap Company seal and let it dry for 40 days.
  • The soap industry in the West Bank has dwindled to just two working factories.
  • Despite challenges, the Nablus Soap Company employs 10 permanent workers and up to 10 temporary employees.
  • The soap is painted with Sweden's famous Falu red paint.
  • Each soap is hand-painted in the traditional folk art style called kirbitz.
  • The Nablus Soap Company produces about 500 horses a day.
  • The smallest horses sell for about 20, while larger ones can cost about 1,500.
  • The tradition of dolla horses dates back centuries in Sweden.
  • Adam Cox runs the last piano factory in Britain, Cavendish Pianos.
  • A Cavendish piano build starts with a soundboard made from spruce trees.
  • The soundboard is attached to a heavy cast iron frame with about 230 strings.
  • Each of the 88 keys is placed in order and adjusted several times.
  • The piano is thoroughly tested with the basher machine to ensure quality.
  • Pianos were invented in Italy in the early 1700s and became popular during the classical era.
  • The UK had hundreds of piano factories, but cheaper foreign imports led to their closure.
  • A Cavendish piano starts at 7,500 pounds, double the price of competitors.
  • Adam offers apprenticeships to preserve the craft of piano making in Britain.
  • Cavendish Pianos aims to continue making high-quality instruments to prevent the craft from disappearing.
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