A wall separates this pair of brothers. It is enough to ring the doorbell of the house next door pulling twice from a stick to know that coffee has been served. They live together and happily share, not only their work, but the family life that gathers together at the dinner table since 1913. With an engine: to honor the memory of their father, Jesús Antonio Castrillón. They know themselves to be proud carpenters, and they talk of the trade with the passion and respect that their father always instilled in them. When they walk into the woods to cut the trees they later turn into furniture, balconies, or handicrafts, they do so as if it were a ritual and ask the woods for permission. They thank them, promise them a dignified use of their entrails, and apologize to them for causing them harm. They take off their shoes and traverse them: they get dressed for it.

This family is not originally from Caldas but from San Félix, Antioquia. They moved first to Pereira, but due to violence they ended up in Salamina, turning this place into the country of their affects and talent. In this coffee town they were able to expand immensely a trade that already was everything for them. The entire family has always worked in different stages of the process. In Salamina they found a heritage jewel: this place lets them feel that the beauty of wood is as powerful as a forest turned into impeccable carved balconies, frames, and furniture.

It is no coincidence that Edilson has a picture of a 1911 pulpit on his desk. Underneath lies the signature of Eliseo Tangarife, the most revered name in Salamina. He was the woodworker who gave this town its seal of identity with his craft. He is the model and inspiration of the Castrillón brothers: a metaphor of the patient and constant time that it takes to work wood. These two inspirers, these “fathers” of the trade, have given them an example. Their father, infinitely curious, learned, researcher of materials, adventurer of hands, dedicated carver, inventor of tools with which to reach the finest carvings. Tangarife, heir to the legacy of European styles, bringer of these styles to the mountains of coffee, who worked with a combination of Louis XV, Rococo, and Art Nuveau with its famous modernist iron shapes —reason why the brothers also work with metal mechanics to carry out delicate architectural heritage restoring jobs—. They have learned everything and are able to take on the most delicate trades.

Hearing them speak makes you excited because you can feel them comfortable and fulfilled in what they do. And they know themselves to be masters, a fact that is acknowledged in their presense inside the book Trades of the Cafetero Cultural Landscape (Oficios del Paisaje Cultural Cafetero.) Moreover, Eduard tells of the rehabilitating role of the work they do at Castri Furniture (Muebles Castri,) since many young apprentices there use carpentry as healing therapy after suffering through addiction. Dedication, rigor, and attention to detail lets them find their path once more. This makes them proud. This makes everybody proud. And, if there is someone who fills up with emotion speaking of the family, it is Laura Sofía, Eduard’s daughter and granddaughter of the Castrillón patriarch. The museum that holds the machines of her grandfather and some of his best works rests her hands and heart. Having studied tourism, she knows that she will be the spokesperson for this Salamina’s artisanal trade from the side of communication.

Even though they are not from Salamina, they have earned their place there. How could they not do so, if they love it so. This shows that it is you who chooses where you’re from and where your heart will settle and shine. And this small corner full of history has become this family’s favorite place to make history.