A Journey of Knots and Self-discovery

Daniel Díaz is a Colombian entrepreneur and artist who uses macramé as a medium to find and express his true identity, Macramanda. To do this he combines the antique techniques of macramé with design and the arts of drag.

It was 11 years ago, on a trip to Brazil, when Daniel discovered macramé, the art of weaving with knots. He asked a friend to make a specific bracelet, but once it was finished, it was not what he was expecting.

As he claimed his friend, he understood that the macramé was much bigger than he expected. As a professional designer, he became interested in this technique and has been exploring it since then. He understood it was a world of possibilities, where color and knots can change everything.

Dani had a long journey through South America before returning to his homeland, Colombia. Some yarns came with him, and he managed to exchange knots and shapes with other artists during the journey. And by the time he was back in Colombia, he had already set an initial source of income. He created a brand called Leki-Lekto, which, according to him, sells accessories and stories. It was at this point where knitting was not only about patterns. It was about connections and exploration.

The technique of macramé goes back in time; some historians suggest that Persians and Babylonians used this technique, and others believe it began with arab weavers during the 13th century. Nevertheless, Macramé comes from the Arabic word ‘ مكرمیة ’ or ‘miqramah’, which means veil or ornamental veil. This art has come and gone over the years, like during the Queen Victoria era, through the 70s in the U.S., and now in South America.

Traveling and knitting cleansed deep into Dani’s wounds, wounds that never seemed to exist and were necessary to heal. He always felt like he was placed in a mold, and that mold was too tight for him. And even though he has lived most of his life in Medellín, one of the ‘most innovative’ cities in the world, he was born in the 90s in a conservative, traditional environment, where traditions, sexism, and religion have craved a stereotype of what a man is and should be. It was especially difficult when he was younger when he was expected to move and dress as a boy, to like horses, cars, football, aguardiente (a traditional Colombian liquor made from anise), not to cry, and to stick to the church’s model of men so he could be accepted. But there was always a voice inside him that said, “There is the dress that you like” or “You look wonderful walking on tiptoes.” Knitting macramé started shifting from something intriguing to meditative, making him understand himself better.

Today, Daniel is Macramanda Quête. As a matter of fact, he has always been. He used to hide her and only came out occasionally when his family was away, and he had the chance to wear his mom’s black velvet dress secretly. Protecting her real essence from the closed-minded society that was expecting her to be a ‘him’ and to have a 48-hour job. Macra arose from waving deep the colorful yarns Daniel had collected over his life. He now identifies as ‘she,’ and her new name comes from the fusion of ‘Macra-‘from macramé, the knotting technique; ‘Amanda,’ the name of his late especially aunt who repeatedly appeared during her meditations, and ‘Quête’ a French word that means ‘search.’

Macramanda is the goddess that inhabits me and in whom I live.

- Daniel Díaz

Clothes, knots, and colors have woven Macramanda’s life. She believes that weaving is an internal conversation with herself and that it has helped her to unify her own emotions and thoughts and basically use them as a way of expression. She went from fitting unallowed clothes in the bathroom to the stage. As she says in one of her monologues: “Dani was never “inside the closet,” but instead he spent his entire childhood and adolescence locked in the toilet.” After she had her brand on track, she realized how therapeutic is the macramé. Part of this Quête, her internal search, she now makes drag performances. There she has the chance to create her attire freely, going one step further by weaving her dresses or ‘trepes’ (the action of getting ready to climb the heels to become a drag queen) in macramé.

She believes that Drag art has allowed her to be her true self, to break fashion rules of what is designed for a specific gender, and to use any clothes she wants, no matter who they were made, to gain confidence and love her own body.

Her parents, best friends, and drag family have also become pillars of love and support that helped her digest “those urges to change, and silencing those ideas [thoughts of not being able to achieve what she wanted] in me.”

Macra’s ‘trepes’ are not drawn or designed before; she starts knitting an idea, but the color and material will guide her during the journey. She uses all types of materials; she is especially fond of the ‘tripa de pollo,’ a cheap material that comes out of fabric leftover from large textile factories. The process of one single dress can take hours and even days, and the main idea is always to enjoy it, let the creativity flow, and leave perfectionism and impatience behind.

While she continues her exploration as a drag queen and a brand owner of Leki Lekto, she is considering the possibility of creating a new line, “I love the idea of knitting exclusive garments for other people, of sitting down with someone and designing something unique for their body.” She adds.

Being Macra is not a character Dani made; she is his identity manifestation and the excuse to explore her feminity. Her creations are unique, evolve in time, and go out of script, not following any patterns or categories and fighting against everything imposed on her life. She loves how her dresses swing and make her feel authentic, empowered, and invincible.

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María Paola Aguilar Rojas

María Paola Aguilar Rojas wurde 1988 in Medellín, Kolumbien geboren. Mit 11 Jahren kam sie durch ein besonderes Geschenk zur Fotografie: Für einen einmonatigen Schulaustausch erhielt sie von ihren Eltern fünf Einwegkameras – und nutzte jede einzelne davon. Kurz darauf kaufte sie sich ihre erste eigene Kamera, eine grüne CV35 Vivitar. Beruflich startete sie in einem audiovisuellen Unternehmen, fand ihren Weg aber bald in die Unternehmenskommunikation im Bildungsbereich Neben ihrer Arbeit reist sie gerne, probiert neue Gerichte aus und lässt sich von guten Geschichten inspirieren.