Uruguay · Painted and decorated fine leather goods
Marroquinería Pintada a Mano
Leather bags hand-painted after construction with original artwork (abstract color blocks and textured brushwork) applied with brush and palette as on a canvas, so that an industrially finished leather piece is artistically 'intervenido' (intervened upon). The documented practitioner, Carolina De Cunto, is the third generation of a family of leather artisans and designers; the family describes its goods as artisanal products with industrial finishing that compete in markets worldwide.
Risk level: Vulnerable · Not Applicable — no UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage inscription exists for this craft at time of writing
Figurative wood carving combined with leaded stained glass set into the carved wood itself: a robed standing figure with a glass heart inset in its chest, animal and figurative forms with cavities filled with colored glass, alongside…
Figurative sculpture assembled from seashells, animal bone, driftwood and stone: robed female figures whose dresses are built from layered shell and bone, life-sized horses whose bodies and manes emerge from densely assembled natural…
Assemblage sculpture built only from reclaimed materials and objects found in Uruguay: wheeled vehicle forms of aged wood, bent wire and salvaged wheels; small figures of bottle caps and scrap metal; shadow boxes with mosaics of used…
Blocking and shaping 100% wool felt into wide-brimmed hats in a gaucho-influenced Uruguayan style: creased, pinched crowns, rolled or flat brims, solid colors such as chocolate brown, deep crimson and aubergine, and braided leather or…
Platería criolla — the chasing and engraving of silver into rastra belt buckles, facón knife sheaths and handles, stirrups, spurs, bit fittings, and mate implements — developed as the gaucho's own material expression of hard-won wealth…
Fretwork and carved wood (madera calada y tallada) depicting Uruguayan cultural heritage, extended in 2017 into xylography (woodcut relief printing) revived and adapted to contemporary design, and from printing on cloth into screen…
The making of leather harness and equestrian equipment (bridas; cabezadas; cinchas; monturas) in the Madrid tradition — the craft that supplied the Spanish royal cavalry and the bullfighting picador tradition.
The complete leather goods production chain in Ubrique (Cádiz) — the town that supplies the leather goods for Louis Vuitton; Chanel; Hermès; and all major European luxury houses without any public acknowledgment.
The making of kookor — the distinctively shaped leather flask used for storing, transporting, and ceremonially serving kumis (fermented mare's milk) — one of the most culturally sacred everyday objects in Kyrgyz nomadic material culture,…
Capal is the traditional Malay leather sandal worn as part of formal Malay dress — the baju melayu outfit worn at Hari Raya, weddings, and official Malay cultural occasions.
The making of specialized leather equipment for bullfighting in the Ronda tradition — including the montera (the distinctive black silk and wool bullfighter's hat with its leather interior structure); the zapatilla taurina (the…
The tanning of fish skin — primarily wolffish, salmon, cod, and perch — into supple, durable leather, a craft documented in Iceland since at least the 9th–12th century settlement period, when fish-skin footwear and other leather goods were…