SOUND film clip from "Visiting Samoa" made by Laura Boulton around 1976 features Samoan women making traditional textiles while engaging in a self-acknowledged "silly" song and dance. This hand woven textile is called ‘ie toga, also referred to as "fine mats" even though they are never used in the traditional sense of the word mat. They are passed down through generations and worn or exchanged during special occasions. The laborious process of creating ‘ie toga is why these textiles are highly valued culturally. Laura Boulton was an ethnomusicologist who travelled the world documenting the music, instruments and dance of many cultures. Boulton got her start with filmmaking through the National Film Board of Canada. At the end of the clip she can be seen holding her field recorder and laughing with the women. This film is housed in the National Anthropological Film Collection (formerly the Human Studies Film Archives) in the National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution.
Video Duration:
1 min 54 sec
YouTube Keywords:
archival historical educational film video anthropology archeology parks ethnographic history culture "cultural geography" "heritage sites" 16mm architecture transportation
