Embrace heritage always, but with a special focus on the end of May which coincides with Canary Islands Day. This has been the philosophy of the Canary Islands‘ Tenerife Island Council for decades. Their commitment to showcasing the ethnographic and educational value of the island’s identity is evident in the proposal of the Insular Sectorial Council of Traditional Clothing to celebrate the 30th of May – this Thursday – with an audiovisual postcard design representing different festive traditions from the eight islands, each with their corresponding costumes.
The video, illustrated by Arón Morales (@thevisual_thinker) and titled Celebrating the Canary Islands, portrays peasants dressed in attire from the late 19th to early 20th century.
These characters are depicted in various situations, playing instruments used in local festivities (such as the timple, guitar, tambourine, drum…) and carrying elements typical of summer celebrations.
For example, the peasant woman from La Gomera carries a bouquet of fruits and flowers, a common sight in the villages of the island, along with a palm hat. Whereas, the woman from Gran Canaria holds a branch with fruits, as is customary in Santa María de Guía, and wears a black felt hat. Meanwhile, a festive horse from Tazacorte is guided by a peasant wearing a La Palma-style hat. In the case of Tenerife, a peasant woman carries a bun to offer at the Santa Bárbara festival in Icod de los Vinos for unmarried women.
Several musicians complete the insular panorama. A woman from La Graciosa appears playing the guitar wearing the characteristic palm hat; a man from Fuerteventura plays another guitar; a man from Lanzarote plays the tambourine, and a shepherd from El Hierro plays the drum wearing a wool cap.
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During the period represented, clothing was characterised by a trend towards homogeneity between islands with the advent of industrial fabrics, except in the use of certain footwear and headgear as shown. A picture – in this case eight – is always worth more than a thousand words.
