Ancient-Style Roller Inspired by the Malibú Culture

In this project, I’ll show you how to create a textured roller inspired by the geometric designs of the Malibú indigenous culture (Around 800 BCE to 400 CE). While the original rollers were handmade using clay and more traditional methods, I chose a simpler technique with materials I had available at home. The goal was to create a functional and even roller to experiment with ancestral-style printing.

1. Acetate sheets
2. Grid paper
3. Masking tape
4. Permanent marker
5. Hot glue gun and glue sticks
6. Double-sided tape
7. Clear tape
8. Modeling clay or plasticine
9. Disposable cup
10. Plaster
11. Fabric paint (for final use)
12. Brushes
13. Scissors or cutter

Since the beginning of time, humans have not only focused on survival, but also on artistic expression. Art has played a vital role in shaping identities, beliefs, and traditions across cultures throughout history.

One fascinating example of this is the use of stamp rollers—tools that appear in ancient civilizations all around the world, from Mesopotamia to the Amazon. These rollers were used to decorate fabrics, skin, or ceramics with symbolic patterns.

For this project, I wanted to create something rooted in my own country’s heritage. That’s why I chose to draw inspiration from the Malibú tribe, an indigenous group that once lived in the Magdalena River Valley in Colombia. Around 800 BCE to 400 CE, the Malibú created beautiful rollers carved from clay, often decorated with simple but meaningful geometric motifs like diamonds and dots. These tools were likely used to stamp designs on textiles or even on the human body during rituals.

This project is my personal homage to that legacy—using modern materials and a simplified process to recreate an ancestral tool with a story behind it.

https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/rodillo-cer%C3%A1mico-cultura-malibu/GwEf-haSPODS3A?hl=es-419

On a piece of grid paper, I drew the pattern I wanted for the roller—simple geometric shapes inspired by Malibú style, mainly diamonds and dots. I outlined the drawing in red and added extra space to one side so it could wrap around the cylinder.

I cut a piece of acetate slightly larger than the drawing and taped it over the design using masking tape.

Using a permanent marker, I traced the outline of the design onto the acetate.

I used a hot glue gun to trace over the lines and dots, creating a raised texture on the acetate surface.

I cut the acetate sheet along the outer edges of the traced design.

I rolled another piece of acetate into a thinner tube, smaller than the textured one, and secured it with plenty of tape to prevent plaster from leaking through any gaps.

I cut the bottom off a disposable cup to make a small base that would hold the cylinders.

I glued the inner cylinder to the center of the base using hot glue, sealing all gaps carefully.

I wrapped the textured acetate into a cylinder, overlapping the edge slightly, and secured it with double-sided tape and clear tape.

Using plasticine, I filled in small gaps along the seam of the textured acetate to make sure the texture was continuous.

I glued the outer cylinder onto the base, again making sure no gaps were left.

I mixed plaster in a disposable cup by gradually adding water until the consistency resembled heavy cream. Then, I poured it into the space between the two cylinders.

Once the plaster dried, I removed the base and the acetate sheets. I carefully took off any leftover plasticine with a stick. The roller was ready!

For the first tests, I covered the roller in paint and rolled it over paper. I didn’t use a stick in the middle; I just tried it using my hands.

I did several more prints, testing pressure and ink coverage.

When printing on fabric, I realized that one coat of paint wasn’t enough. I had to keep applying fabric paint with a brush as I rolled to get a clear, continuous print.

With all the learning from my tests, I used the roller to decorate a drawstring bag with fabric paint—and I loved the result!

Hope you enjoyed it! Happy making!