Lieve Lieckens

GCV Mandenvlechten

Basketweaver

©Lieve Lieckens

Processional giants

Lieve specialises in custom-made willow baskets and processional giants
She loves sharing her knowledge with students
Her pieces are made using locally cultivated willow

Lieve Lieckens practices a modernised form of basket weaving, based on traditional techniques. Sustainability is key to her method: she only uses locally cultivated willow. Lieve became inspired after meeting a female basket weaver at a local market. “I was fascinated by what she was able to create with some willow branches. It was love at first sight.” She learned from different masters, followed classes at the French basketry school in Fayl-Billot, and continues to follow masterclasses all over Europe in a constant quest to improve her skills. She also loves sharing her own knowledge by giving courses and workshops, as well as providing coaching and consulting. Apart from baskets, she works on processional giants, part of a folkloric Belgian tradition that is recognised by UNESCO.

Interview

©Lieve Lieckens

©Lieve Lieckens

How is your craft linked to your region?: I am considered to be ‘the doctor of giants' in Belgium. This is my way of contributing to my country’s cultural heritage. I have worked on processional giants for the House of Giants museum in the city of Ath, as well as for many private individuals, associations, cities and municipalities.
How do you express tradition and innovation in your work?: I make traditional functional baskets, such as grocery baskets, and also heritage and re-enactment baskets, old-timer car and motor baskets, cradles and inner structures of giants. To be innovative, I collaborate with different experts, from interior to fashion designers.
What does well-made mean to you?: It depends on the perspective. For myself, I look for artisanal excellence in all my creations, to make unique products that can last a lifetime. For my students, I want them to have a feeling of success and fulfilment regardless of their level.
Could your craft be considered in danger?: Yes. There are only a couple of professional basket weavers left in Belgium. To my knowledge I am the only creator of the inner structures for giants left. At the time of writing, there is no heritage programme for the preservation of this craft, which is very unfortunate.

Lieve Lieckens is a master artisan: she began her career in 2002 and she started teaching in 2002