Master artisan Sergio Ducón claims he’s a frustrated painter, which is why he expresses himself through fique weaving. His vibrant designs—handwoven textiles that evoke the landscapes and clay strata of Santander—serve as the medium for his artistry. His favorite creation over the years has been the cot, a wooden and fique stool adorned with intricately drawn threads that form the seat, along with a custom-designed backrest he crafted himself.

However, his work wouldn’t be the same without its deep ties to education and social outreach. What began as his first workshop after studying textile design, where he offered knot and vertical loom rugs, transformed into a marathon of teaching with the Sena across 52 municipalities in Santander after he reconnected with the fique of his homeland through a project with the Ministry of Agriculture. For 22 years, he dedicated himself to this mission while also being part of the design team at Artesanías de Colombia, training over 3,200 individuals along the way. Among his students were victims of violence and vulnerable populations, and with this, fique weaving took on new meaning. It became a tool to connect with people and provide them support.

With this in mind, he started working with incarcerated individuals, setting up a workshop where they could learn to weave with their own hands. He approached them with the understanding that we are all equals—human beings who make mistakes and can only be judged by God. Through weaving, he aimed to help them momentarily escape their confinement and share insights on human relationships while they awaited their freedom. The workshop hours also offered them a reduction in their sentences, and even from within prison, they could generate income for their families through crafts. Sergio found a deep satisfaction in witnessing how his students gradually shifted their attitudes toward their situations. Unfortunately, in late 2023, he had to close his workshop at the San Gil Medium-Security Prison due to a drop in sales that made it impossible to fairly compensate the inmates for their work.

For his tremendous contributions and career, Sergio Ducón received the Medal for Contemporary Craft Mastery in 2010, recognizing his dedication to pedagogy and mastery in his craft. Today, he continues to work in San Gil, where he has lived for the past twenty years, carrying on the weaving traditions of the Guane people. Rising at 3 a.m.—when the weather is at its best on Cerro de la Cruz where he resides—he continues to teach, now aiming to cross borders and bring the knowledge of fique to a crafts school project in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.