Spider Festival

A somewhat popular festival in parts of Iyas, during which the cultural significance of spiders is celebrated, and great art is displayed for all to see.

History

Long ago on the continent of Iyas, a technique was developed to harvest threads from spiders and weave clothes out of them. This process was difficult, time consuming, and expensive, but produced a luxury silk. This silk soon became quite popular among the wealthy, and grew into a sign of status. The Spider Festival began as an annual event in a specific city, wherein the most talented and distinguished silk weavers were gathered together to display and sell their wares to these wealthy elite. It expanded to neighboring regions, and eventually became a popular custom for the wealthy. Some opened themselves to ordinary people, often as a way for leaders to placate their populace, which became the norm over time.

Execution

The Spider Festival is still little more than a large art fare. Often held in more public location than when it started, such as town centers, silk weavers and other artists display their works for sale. Spider motifs are popular, but not universal. The non-wealthy are often allowed to attend, but most of the goods are only affordable to the elite.

Components and tools

The most iconic product displayed during the festival is, of course, spider-silk clothes and other textiles. Carvings, jewelry, and pottery are quite common as well.

Participants

The most important part of the Spider Festival is the artists and their work, as they are what brings in crowds, rich and poor alike, to admire the talent of these renowned artisans. The wealthy sponsors also play an important role, funding the artists' careers by purchasing or even commissioning their work. There are some works of prices that make them reasonable purchases for the less wealthy, and even those who come only to observe have something to offer the event, in the form of their attention.