|
Greg Pangelinan carves his way into Chamorro history
Greg Pangelinan is one of the familiar faces Wednesday nights down at the Chamorro Village in Hagatna, selling everything from shell carvings to machete. His work is even well known enough that he has a loyal following. From turtles to dolphins, birds, the plumeria flower and so much more, Pangelinan, a member of the Chamorro Crafters, carves a wealth of designs from materials like wood, giant clam shell, stone and coconut.
This self-taught carver has been avidly perfecting his trade since the tender age of 16. "I started when I was working at a surveyor firm," he recalled. "Every time we had a three-hour rest time when they were doing the computation of the field work, I went and started collecting the wood, especially the ifit wood, and started carving."
Pangelinan is passing down his experience and knowledge to younger generations; he says he's taken on somewhere between 15-20 apprentices over the past several years. He explained, "I started teaching since 2002 with the help of CAHA giving me a grant to teach carving and also blacksmithing. It is difficult to teach, but once they get the hang of how to use the equipment, knives and whatnot, it's very easy for them."
Besides teaching others his many trades, Pangelinan also takes time out to not only tell Chamorro history, but also show the ancient artifacts to the schoolchildren of Guam. "It is very important to pass this because we are getting older and somebody has to continue our culture," he said.
|