Men are sometimes taught to weave when there are no women to pass the
tradition to within families. Taught by his maternal grandmother at the
age of ten or eleven, Gilbert Begay is the only weaver among the grandchildren
on his mother's side. He began by weaving Gallup throws much like hers,
and later tried other family patterns, new weaving styles , and making
garments.
As he progressed, he drew weaving designs on paper but found he could
not replicate them on the loom. Now he weaves free-form, the way most
Navajo weavers create patterned textiles. His grandmother continues to
encourage him by saying, "What kind of head do you have, to weave
that desin? I couldn't do that--you need to keep weaving."
Although he works at a gas station and as a bookkeeper, Gilbert finds
time to weave and to sell his work at the Crownpoint Rug auction and through
the Eastern Navajo Weaver's Association.
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