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Confronting crises: woodcarvers’ toil

BAGUIO CITY (Feb. 9) — Oca Buhungan, 42, trains his chisels on the wood and strikes it with firmness while telling his story. Before his story ends, the block of wood he was carving slowly takes the shape of a wooden elephant. Oca has been into wood carving since he was 15.

As a young artist, his favorite subjects included animals, such as the one he worked on at the time of the interview. He said he has done lots of lions, tigers, elephants and the local carabao. He has also carved human figures, the sinantatao.

“Nu dadduma, pakitaanda kami laeng ti litrato ket padasen min nga aramiden,” (Sometimes they only show us a picture and we try to carve the figures), he says as he illustrates his keenness in his craft. No one, he says, taught him to carve. “Adda laeng iti hilig ti maysa a tao,” (It is just in one’s passion), he humbly quips.

Hard labor, priceless artwork

For the wooden elephant almost 12 inches tall, he gets P250.

He tells us that at times, the shop owner decides how much he gets for a day’s toil. Oca, like other wood carvers, is usually paid for each piece of wood carving he finishes. He usually spends the whole day carving an elephant.

“Kakaasi ti maki-pordia, ta uray kasapulam ti kuwarta nu awan ti ibayad ti nagpapaet, awan ti maalam,” (Daily wage earners are at the losing end, because even if one needs the money when the traders do not have cash, he gets nothing), Oca said of his plight now that there are not enough buyers.

“Sabali pay ti bayad ti agkayo,” (Payment for those who deliver the wood is another thing), Oca clarifies.

For most wood carvers in Asin Road here, the meningococcemia scare is just one of the reasons for the lean months which started long before the first casualty was reported in the city. Oca remembers the name of Martin Burnham whose abduction by the Abu Sayaff in southern Philippines caused a slump in tourist arrivals in the country.

“Idi na-kidnap isuna, saanen nga immay dagiti gumatang ti paet (wood carving),” Oca relates referring to foreign tourists who used to come and buy wood carvings as a souvenir. He says, he only carves when there are job orders to fill. An American tourist recently made an order for 16 elephants, he says, so he has work to do these next 15 days.

But Oca and his boss have another problem – where to get wood now that there is a total log ban as an aftershock of typhoon Yoyong. Kamagong which comes mostly from typhoon devastated Aurora province, is Oca’s favorite wood. Iron wood, locally known as sangilo, is available in Benguet but is fast becoming rare. Carvers now make do with acacia logs which Oca said was introduced to them by the Americans.

The total log ban brings them a more permanent problem. “Awan ti mapaetan gapu iti total log ban,” (There is nothing to carve because of the total log ban), relates Alex Ognayon, 45, also a wood carver.

“Uray nalpasen ket tiliwenda,” (Even finished products get impounded), the wood carvers complain. “Saanda met nga ipalubos dagiti kaykayo a naiyanod ni bagyo,” (Government authorities do not allow even the transport of logs which were washed away with the typhoon), he said.

Most wood carvers here came from Ifugao. They have fond memories of their childhood when they would carve in the forests without going home for several days. They disclose that they have left Ifugao in search for more wood to carve. Some 300 of them are in Aurora and Quezon Province, where most still get kamagong.

A larger number are either in Pangasinan or La Union where there are more trees available for the wood craft.

Alex now gets carved materials from his fellow carvers in Aurora and finishes them off. He and his wife do the sanding and varnishing before the products are sold.

Product outlets

Wood carvers sell their products to traders who still have to do the finishing touches such as sanding and varnishing.

A rough product usually commands a 100% mark-up once it is finished. Usual buyers are those in the export business. Foreign tourists also come to buy either for themselves or for trading in their own countries.

Among foreign tourists, the Americans, Japanese and Taiwanese used to frequent the shops for job orders. There are sporadic arrivals of Scottish, Spaniards and French nationals who buy carved items.

Melody Kinggingan of the Kinggingan Handcrafts joins exhibits and trade fairs in greater Manila area as an alternative to market woodcarvings.

She says regular buyers still come to place orders. However, the arrival of end-consumers or those who buy carvings for themselves has dwindled since last year. “They create a sizeable portion of the sales”, Melody says.

Other traders say that they now rely on the local traders in the Marbay Shopping Center and the Maharlika Livelihood Center in Baguio City. But there is a problem of cash inflow because these stores rarely make a sale these days. “Utangenda ket subli-sublian nga inaldaw tapno makasingir,” (They take the items on credit and we have to collect payments daily), a trader in Asin reveals.

For Oca and a thousand others who live daily with earnings from wood carving, not even a relief from the total log ban brings them enough relief. Like workers of other industries highly dependent on tourist arrivals, wood carvers cannot wait until the next Panagbenga Festival. # Lyn V. Ramo and Marlon Gomarcho for NORDIS

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