Local kite maker talks about Guyanese traditions at Easter

WHAT makes something unique? Is it the shape, size, colour, or how many of them there are? Or is it where it came from? For kite maker and craftsman Maurice Prince, uniqueness lies in originality. Prince has graced the streets of Georgetown every Easter for more than three decades. He has become a constant for many of the neighbourhood children in communities like Campbellville, where he is from.

From kites 10 feet high to pieces that fit in the palm of your hand, Prince showcases diversity in his craft. He is as significant to kite-making in Guyana as Easter is to Guyanese. In fact, the Pepperpot Magazine featured Prince and his dynamic kite-making skills in 2021, where the artist encouraged people to use Easter as a means of unwinding following the stresses of the pandemic.

A man of many crafts, Prince has spent many years perfecting his handiwork. And as another year finds him on the streets of Georgetown, he shares why togetherness rises as kites do during Easter.
Getting into the crafts

Prince had humble beginnings in the village of Campbellville. He had an upbringing like any other Guyanese boy would some 65 years ago. Throughout his early days, Prince was a free-spirited young man. Although he never truly settled on one particular job up until this time, he has always known art was a part of him. He initially ventured into the crafts out of necessity. With the birth of his first child during his late 20s, he realised that he had more than himself to support. He shared: “I got into it when I was like 25 or 28. I started with the craft because I had children.” To Prince, art is about searching within oneself and finding art. It is now left up to the person to bring that art to life. As he shared, “I was born with craft, something inside of me. Just like everybody is born with something inside of them. It is just that you have to search yourself, and I searched myself and realised I could do something out of wood.”
What makes an original

Although most people know Prince as the kite man, he is a man of many talents, and woodcraft was where he took his first step. Prince scouts his community for pieces of wood to carve into something unique. Some time after wood carvings, Prince dived into kite making. Each kite that Prince makes is different. Each one with a different assembly of colours, varying in sizes and with a star that is just slightly different from the next. He manages to make these individualistic pieces due to his crafting process.

As Prince explains, kite making for him is not just for Easter; it’s an all-year activity that begins after one Easter is over. “The majority of the stars is a different kind of star. The assembling is different. It is very rare that you are going to find stars that look like one another. It is very hard to find two kites with the same star or design; they are all different.”

Making a kite, although a seemingly simple endeavour, becomes an immense undertaking when one is asked to complete hundreds. Prince makes hundreds of kites every year. Beginning in August, he collects bamboo and dyes his kite paper by hand. His method of making the captivating flying contraptions that will rise on Easter is authentic in nature. Setting out months prior, Prince designs each kite component by hand and then puts them together, giving rise to the uniqueness for which his pieces are prized.

As he stated, “I collect the bamboo and dye the paper how I want it, and then each piece of paper is cut. I sit down and paste each piece on by hand.” Prince cuts thousands of pieces of paper every year to make the more than three hundred kites he has every year.
What Easter is to Guyana

The story of Easter is a familiar one, regardless of race or religion. Thousands of people everywhere set kites to the sky to symbolise the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Guyanese, Easter is as big a day as any national holiday. As much as it is a time for spiritual reflection, the occasion has also become a Guyanese tradition in countless ways. Apart from the vibrant kites and warm cross buns, Easter is also a time of togetherness when the diversity of Guyana is truly showcased.

This is something that Prince knows plenty about. Throughout the years, he has seen Easter change and evolve, becoming bigger and better each year. Two things that remain, however, are kite flying and the undeniable unity that Easter fosters. Prince shared that, “Easter is a time that brings people together. People come together during Easter. When people come is everybody: African, East Indian, Amerindian.”