Photovoice in Amarapura
Photovoice and participatory video are visual methods whereby the participants produce their own audio-visual soundbites, and the storytelling resides with the community themselves. Through this British Council-supported collaboration, we assisted the participants to put forward their stories based on the photos and videos they sent throughout the project.
Ma Wai, our Amarapura participant, attended high school and is 37 years old now. The photos you see here are ones that she submitted to us and the text is based upon an interview between Khin Lin Naing and Ma Wai that has been translated into English (with minor edits by Dr Britta Boyer).
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura
Ma Wa started to learn weaving techniques at about 10 years old from her mother and grandmother and has 17 years of weaving experience. She uses a hand picking method for weaving.
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura
Her favorite color is black. She always uses a base colour of black and uses many different weft colours.
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura
Ma Wai wakes up at 7 am and cooks and at 8 pm, she starts to weave until 12.
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura
She stops to rest for 3 hours and then starts to weave again from 3 pm to about 10 pm. Total weaving time per day is about 12 hours. She can weave 1 longyi within 1.5 days.
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura
She lives in Amarapura with her family; mother, twin sister, husband and two sons. Her husband works as a gemstone broker. She is a weaver, she bought the threads from near market and do loom set up near her home by paying fee, she weaves longyies daily at home. She sell products, some are retail, and some are directly to clothes shop. She does weaving daily.
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura
Her income is half of her family’s expenses (about 3 lakhs). She takes a rest in full moon day and dark moon day.
Photovoice: Ma Wai, Amarapura