Tambani is a quilting and embroidering initiative to set a group of disadvantaged rural African women on a path of self-actualization and economic empowerment. The embroidered folk tales, which are sold as applique blocks and used by quilters, knitters and crafters all over the world, is a practical way of preserving the Venda oral tradition.

First, the story part:

I lectured in Afrikaans literature at the University of Venda in the northern parts of South Africa close to the border with Zimbabwe. One day a student waited for me at the end of a lecture at my office.

“My grandmother knows many Venda folktales.” He said shyly.

The following Saturday morning I picked him up at the Venda Sun Hotel with my Isusu van. After hours traveling on a very bad dirt road I met his grandmother and an ancient world full of wonderful Venda folktales opened up to me that day. The Venda oral tradition: known by so many women who live in remote villages amongst age old baobab trees or in lonely huts high up on mountain sides, on the banks of lazy warm rivers – what a treasure!

More students invited me to the home of an aunt, a mother or a neighbour who knew ngano (folk tales). I could not wait to start a research project because even then I realized these oral texts may not last very long, the women were old and the new generation had other interests.

Tambani was the name of the oldest narrator in the village of Muswodi, she must have been in her nineties when I met her but she still had a sharp memory and could relate long oral texts. In 1996 I completed a doctorate with the title “Only the words remained – A Religio-Philosophic interpretation of Venda folk tales.

Now the embroidery part:

After the academic work was completed I gave thought to the Tambani Embroidery Project to perpetuate the ancient oral tradition by “publishing” these beautiful folktales in embroidered form for a larger audience and at the same time to provide employment for women who live in abject poverty on the periphery of economic mainstream in South Africa.

Pastor Piet Mavhetha, who was my assistant during the research often talked to me about the poverty of his community, poverty that I could scarcely grasp. We thought of starting small embroidery groups along a dirt road beginning with the village of  Folovhodwe then to Muswodi, Tshiungani, Matshena, Maramanzhi perhaps even to Dambale, Mananzhe, Domboni and Mutele. A small dirt road connecting unknown scattered villages, until you meet the open hearted women by name and there comes another initial on a carefully embroidered square.

Initially I trained two women to do the chain stitch, they trained sisters and friends and at present more than 65 embroiderers produce about 400 hand embroidered appliqué blocks per month, and they constantly cry out for more work. Many villages send messages to me asking me to train them too, “We are also poor! Help us too.” they say.