Last Thursday, I visited the Amazonia exhibit at the Museum of Anthropology on the UBC campus. Whilst observing some of the interesting statistics on the wall, and reading the plaques adjacent to some of the culturally significant objects, I came upon the hammocks at the back of the room. Now, many of my friends had commented on the hammocks being in the exhibit and how comfortable they were. Admittingly, swinging in the hammocks was one of the things I looked forward to in this exhibit, and it they not disappoint. I enjoyed the hammocks so much, that I decided to visit the exhibit a second time with a group of friends. As I observed the exhibit for a second time, I noticed smaller details, such as the interesting fact that logging only accounts for 3% of deforestation, and that farming accounts for the largest percentage. I again found myself gravitating towards the hammocks at the back of the room. Maybe it was because I tired after a day full of lectures and required a short rest, or maybe it was because the exhibit was structured to have the hammocks at the back, lit by spotlights.
One thing I found particularly interesting occurred whilst I was peacefully minding my business and enjoying a short nap whilst in the hammocks. A man was discussing the historical significance of many of the objects that lay in the exhibit, such as the masks towards the front. He passed by my friends and I, and pointed out to a colleague that hammocks were designed for the individual to lay diagonally, rather than straight. I assumed he was a professor at the university. After he passed, I decided to try lying diagonally, as his comment almost seemed like a jab at our lack of hammock knowledge…To my surprise, it was much more comfortable and felt as it I could sleep for an extended period of time without being sore. As he passed a second time, he whispered to his colleague “there, now they’ve got it” (I’m assuming he thought I had not overheard his conversation). Whilst this was an interesting story, it pointed out to me that hammocks were so embedded/borrowed in North American popular culture, that I had not even known the correct way of using it. Undoubtedly, many people may not know where hammocks originated, or even may have assumed they originated in North America.
This inspired me to write this blog about hammocks as an object that is deeply connected to North American popular culture, whilst originating from the Amazonian people (and others in Central, South America). As it turns out, my quest for relaxation led me to understanding a connection; both myself and the Amazonian people enjoy(ed) a comfortable place to rest. The hammock is in it of self a technology of memory, subverting the time and distance of its origins whilst bringing a small portion of Amazonian culture and history into my daily life. Whilst the hammock may have seemed relaxing and rewarding to those that may not have necessary visited the exhibit without an assignment, to me, it was the object that most connected and broadened my interest in the Amazonian culture.
