The Huichol Center for Cultural Survival and Traditional Arts, known in Mexico as the “Centro Indígena Huichol,” was founded by UCLA anthropologist Susana Valadez in 1977. Located in the remote town of Huejuquilla el Alto, Jalisco, the non-profit was established to support the endangered Wixarika (Huichol) tribe as its members are forced to transition into…
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The Highlands of Chiapas is a region of outstanding cultural richness, its indigenous communities preserving the heritage of their pre-Hispanic ancestors through the traditions of complex embroidery and the backstrap loom (in which the weaver herself is a tension point on one end of the loom). Women from these communities are taught textile arts from…
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Santa Fe de la Laguna is a small community in Michoacán known as a center of preservation for the culture and customs of the Purépecha people. One of these is the tradition of high-glaze black ceramics, a folk art passed down from generation to generation. Two generations of the family of master potter Manuel Jerónimo…
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Manuel David Reyes Ramirez and Maricela Gomez Lopez met in Cuernavaca where Manuel was working for the artist Juan Soriano and Maricela was the cook in the home of a well-known art collector. In 2003 they returned to their native Mixtec area in the state of Oaxaca, which has a ceramic history dating back at…
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One day while visiting the artisan development school in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Francisco Javier Sanchez Rios and his wife, Maria del Refugio Blanco Lopez, decided to enroll in a jewelry-making workshop. In 1546 one the world’s richest veins of silver was discovered in Zacatecas and since then, the area has been noted for the jewelry crafted…
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Fernando Nieto Castillo comes from a traditional family clay workshop San Bartolo Coyotepec, Oaxaca. In the 1950s his grandmother, Doña Rosa, invented the shiny finish that is most associated with Oaxacan black clay. This quickly became a favorite of tourists, creating new markets for the craft. His family workshop continues making traditional pottery using his…
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This group of seven Nnancue Ñomndaa (indigenous Amuzgas) women from the community of Suljaa or Xochistlahuaca, Guerrero, has come together in the belief that solidarity between women who weave and embroider creates a common good that strengthens them as a whole. From childhood, the women were taught the art of weaving on a waist loom…
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Bonifacio Vásquez Pacheco and Aurelia Gómez Jiménez live in Tlahuitlotepec, a small, isolated town in the Mixe region of the mountains of Oaxaca. Traditional dress, especially the use of shawls, is common with woolen shawls worn daily to protect against cold or hot weather. Finer cotton shawls are worn for special events such as parties,…
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Our weavers see themselves as true guardians of the wisdom and skill of our ancestors because even today our ancient textile arts help us build our homes and feed our families.
Oaxacan wood carving—using a smooth wood called copal—dates back to pre-Hispanic times, when the ancestors of artisans like Manuel made wood carvings for practical use. With the arrival of the Spanish, Catholic symbolism began to be incorporated into items whose purpose had religious meaning as well as ancient, indigenous relevance. In the late 20th century,…
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Long before the Spanish arrived in Mexico, indigenous people created artworks as ingenious as they were visually appealing. Continuing that tradition today are master woodcarvers Florencia Espinal Ramírez and Vicente Castillo, a veritable creative dream team. Together, they make a range of extraordinary lacquered boxes designed to hold any number of treasures. “Our community is…
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Husband and wife team Nicolás and María del Rosario stand out for their charmingly sculpted and intricately finished clay artworks. They live and work in Santa Fe de la Laguna, a small Purhepecha village located on the shores of Lake Patzcuaro in the Mexican state of Michoacán. This area has been a pottery production center…
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The evocatively named artist group Mexican Dreamweavers is a thriving cooperative located in the historically rich region of Oaxaca, Mexico. From elaborately patterned blouses to gently hued pillowcases and table coverings, Mexican Dreamweaver has long been committed to using natural dyes of cochineal, indigo and tixinda (sea snail purple), as well as handspun regional cotton…
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