Tessa Bunney

Documentary Photographer
The Story of Hemp
Location: North Yorkshire, UK
Nationality: British
Biography: For over 25 years, I have photographed rural life, working closely with individuals and communities to investigate how the landscape is shaped by humans. From hill farmers near my home in North Yorkshire to Icelandic puffin hunters, from Finnish... MORE
Public Story
The Story of Hemp
Copyright Tessa Bunney 2024
Updated Aug 2015
Location Lao PDR
Topics Community, Documentary, Editorial, Environmental, Hmong, Lao PDR, Laos, Photojournalism, Portraiture, Rural, Southeast Asia, Tradition, Travel

Planting Harvesting Drying Peeling Twisting Reeling Winding Pounding Boiling Washing Drying Weaving Pressing Batik Appliqué Embroidery

But hemp means far more to Hmong women than just a series of processes. It is an indispensable part of Hmong tradition "“ used from birth through to marriage and in death.

Making hemp yarn is a long and laborious process, the end result is a strong, durable cloth with qualities similar to linen, which Hmong women make into skirts for their traditional clothing and household items. In Lao PDR, hemp is now only cultivated in remote mountainous areas of the north.

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The Story of Hemp by Tessa Bunney
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