Dzitnup is a design project that aims to promote the creative, economic and social liberation of female artisans.

Dzitnup
The name is derived from the Dzitnup Maya community, located in the municipality of Valladolid in Yucatan, Mexico. Around 800 people live in Dzitup, and it’s only known for two 'cenotes' of touristic importance.

Indigenous women and their dress
From the prehispanic era to today, the 'huipil' is the most common garment for indigenous Mexican women. There are special 'huipils', such as the 'terno', that are used by women in weddings and then preserved until the woman’s death, when she is buried wearing it.

The huipil is a very important feminine symbol. It demonstrates the skills and creativity of these women through their will to continue their indigenous traditions and the pride of their specific culture.

The majority of the Maya artisan women learn to embroider from their mothers, aunts, or grandmothers. They are taught during their adolescence, ensuring that this activity becomes a cultural inheritance, passed from one generation to the next.

Luisa, Lilia, Gregoria and Flora wear 'huipils' every day. Julia, Felipa, Fermina and Lydia only wear theirs for special occasions or holidays, while Rosy and Josefina don’t have 'huipils'.

The young women in Dzitnup hardly wear 'huipils' anymore. In a loss to the tradition, factory work in the Yucatan has replaced the embroidery tradition, and the women now spend their time assembling jeans and underwear, for which they receive a salary of approximately 60 euros a month. The factory owners benefit from employing skilled asrtisan women, as it reduces training costs. Unfortunately, for the indigenous women, working in a factory means they can no longer sustain their embroidery tradition, which they have been devoted to since childhood.

Artisan Production as an alternative to making a living!
Can we accept other ways of thinking and produce objects that aren’t western or industrial?
The design aimed to develop should imply alternative ways of production to maintain them for the future, and to assign the following two functions to the objects: improving the quality of life of the consumers and producers and transmitting the decision of a culture of making their living by maintaining their handcrafts tradition.

Now the women of Dzitnup embroider again and interpret western fashion, making new pieces on a small scale. Due to the type of production, all of the Dzitnup pieces are unique and different from each other, including 'imperfections'.

With the sale of their products, these women are one step closer to being independent and able to commit their time to the development of their craft.