The Footwear and Industry Museum of Inca will open the exhibition TRENAR this Friday, May 9. The exhibit highlights the art of leather braiding, offering a historical journey through this artisanal technique that is closely tied to the footwear industry in Mallorca, while emphasising the key role played by women.

According to the Councillor for Museums, Andreu Caballero, “TRENAR is the result of rigorous research aimed at valuing a unique technique that transformed summer footwear in the early 20th century. Thanks to companies like Matrema, Curtrexa, Trenzados Capricornio, and Trenzados Ferrer, Mallorca became a national and international reference point.”

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The Inca Footwear Museum

The exhibition’s curator, Biel Company, stresses that “this exhibition is also a tribute to all the women from towns such as Sant Joan, Maria de la Salut, and Algaida, who turned braiding into a key economic activity through the ‘wheel’ system.” Many of them crafted braids at home, which were later transformed into shoes, handbags, or even furniture. Over time, this work generated a rich heritage of knowledge, vocabulary, and customs that have survived through oral memory and are now being recognised.

The exhibit follows a chronological path, beginning with the earliest uses of braiding, likely associated with leather suppliers and tanners who provided materials to factories. In that initial phase, women worked from home using wooden frames and shears. Later, hand looms allowed for more elaborate braiding. In the 1970s, the arrival of mechanisation — driven by Croatian figures such as Esteban Zovko and Ivan Kadic — brought a radical transformation to the production process.

In addition to showcasing original tools and pieces, TRENAR features audiovisual material and testimonies that highlight the social and cultural value of this craft. The exhibit also presents contemporary initiatives such as Mastrenat, based in Pollença, which supports the revival of local production, as well as the continued use of braided leather by artisanal factories like Tiamer, in Mancor. “There are still many stories to tell, but this exhibition is a great starting point,” concludes Company.

The exhibition will be open to the public from May 9 to November 2, 2025. During this period, the museum will offer guided tours and complementary activities to deepen understanding of this ancestral technique.