Santa Fe International Folk Art Market

Getting closer to our departure for the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market. The copper pieces have arrived, after making the long journey from Santa Clara del Cobre, but unfortunately their creator, Roberto Castro Hernandez, won't be joining them. Roberto told me that personal financial issues prevent him from traveling to Santa Fe, and the fact that our U.S. State Dept. makes it SO damn difficult for Mexicans to get a tourist visa was extremely discouraging. Presenting an official letter of invitation from the New Mexican government, explaining that Roberto was selected to exhibit at this prestigious cultural event made no difference...they wouldn't give him permission to spend four days in this country. No wonder people give up trying to come here legally-- it's almost impossible to get a visa!




Hopefully we will have great success, sell it all for him, and will work on bringing Roberto next year. Here are samples of two pieces that have been favorites in past years.

But...Felipe Horta, talented mask maker from Tocuaro, Michoacán, will be with us in our booth!

If you want to learn more about the fabulous Santa Fe International Folk Art Market, coming this July 9-11, check out their website: www.folkartmarket.org

Cinco de Mayo

It's Cinco de Mayo and I am aware--again-- of how little we Americans really know about our neighbor to the south. So, let's get this out of the way. Yes, it's a cool holiday for those of us who like to drink margaritas and Coronas and have a good time celebrating the color and spirit of Mexico. But, it's not Mexican Independence Day. Cinco de Mayo is not even celebrated in most parts of Mexico. I remember when we were living in Morelia in May of 2004, and I was shocked that NOTHING was happening! Just a regular day, it wasn't even a day off from school. If you want to celebrate, go ahead, because though it's not significant for the Mexicanos in Mexico, it is a big day for Latino pride here in the U.S. You might want to read the link below to find out what did happen on the 5th of May in 1862.
http://www.mexonline.com/cinco-de-mayo.htm
Oh, and maybe this year you should do something different. Like try drinking a good Mexican beer such as Bohemia. By the way, if you are ever in Michoacan, la cerveza Victoria is mighty tasty.
But if you really want to celebrate, buy a nice piece of art-- such as the Virgen of Guadalupe figure above from Ocumicho, or a handmade rebozo or blouse. It will help a struggling Mexican artist, and bring some beauty into your life that will last a lot longer than your tequila buzz.
For a large selection of fine Mexican folk art and crafts go to www.mexicobyhand.com
(below on left) Rebozo from La Piedad. Many other styles and colors also available.
(below on right) Handpainted batea from Quiroga.

Calabacitas-- Burnished Clay Squash

Since we started Mexico By Hand, the burnished clay squash have always been a special item for our customers. In 2005, the first year we exhibited at the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market, we had 25 of them-- and sold out in two days. They reflect a love of nature, create a warmth in one's home, and of course are beautiful to the eye. Many people, including me, enjoy stroking them as well, as they are so smooth and sensuous. Really they are.

The Martinez family has one of the three workshops on the same short block in Zinapecuaro, Michoacán-- where the calabazas or burnished squash are made. We had been buying from the other two artisan families for many years now, but a couple of years ago we discovered the Martinez family -- dad, mom and son-- thanks to this boy here, who is NOT a member of the family. On one of our annual trips to the town, this guy came out to hustle us inside, as he saw us going into his neighbor's place, our friends the Hernandez Cano family, to buy clay squash. In other words, he was trying to steer us away from the competition. We agreed to come by afterwards, and we did. The mini squash are a new thing in town, and the Señora's specialty. Her husband, Ventura Martinez and their son, Fernando, make the large ones. The chico spends a lot of time helping the Señora, instead of going to school because he says it doesn't interest him. She in turn feeds him and basically mothers him, something he apparently doesn't get much of in his own family. I hope the boy listens to my advice about the importance of knowing how to read and do math if you're going to be a successful artisan. Obviously he finds something interesting and worth learning in this family's clay workshop. Who knows, maybe I'll buy one of his creations someday if he sticks with it and learns the craft.

 These beautiful  burnished squash come in a variety of sizes and colors and are available at the Mexican Museum store in San Francisco www.mexicanmuseum.org and on our website: www.mexicobyhand.com. Please contact us at (510) 526-6395 for more info. if you'd like to order.

Sustainable Woven Tule Baskets

Every day should be Earth Day, don't you think?
This traditional woven basket from Michoacán is almost an endangered species, because most Mexicans are now using insulated plastic or styrofoam tortilleros. They do the job and keep the tortillas hot, but most everyone agrees they're pretty ugly. The tortillero here was handmade by an indigenous artisan near Lake Patzcuaro, and the material used came right from the shores of the lake. It's called chuspata there, but more commonly known here as tule reeds. Wrap up your tortillitas in a handwoven or embroidered servilleta (napkin) and serve them in this pretty basket-- and you've got yourself an eco-friendly sustainable item for your home. Plus you're helping employ poor folks in Mexico who can really use the income. The chuspata artisans also make animal figures, and even lamps and furniture that are reinforced and quite strong! It's a sustainable craft that gives your home that touch of soul and charm we all desire. Please contact us if you're interested in making a purchase at www.mexicobyhand.com. We also sell wholesale to stores and restaurants.

I often buy from señora Juliana whose family workshop is located in the pueblo of Ihuatzio. Here she demonstrates figure weaving with another kind of plant material they call popote or straw. You can often find her here at La Casa de los Once Patios in Patzcuaro.









Above is a typical woven fish, one of the many animal figures made by skilled Purepecha artists. Below on the left, a beautiful chuspata tray with handles. And below on the right-- a lovely, yet sturdy chuspata chair and lamp made from tule reeds from around Lake Patzcuaro.

Lovely Lead-Free Ceramics

This beautiful piece was made by a pottery cooperative located in a remote indigenous village in Michoacán, Mexico called Patamban. Patamban has been a community of Purepecha Indian potters since the 16th century. The cooperative known as Alfareros de Patamban began to work as a group in 1974, but in the beginning each family worked separately in its own workshop and joined together only to sell their products. In 1984 they had developed more trust between the artisans, and decided to change their technique, which led to the high-fired, lead free product they now produce in the cooperative's central workshop. The founders are Ricardo Calderon (educated and trained in Mexico City) and his wife, Catalina Bony, who comes from a family of French ceramicists. Now many of the original founding members are in their fifties and sixties, and their children are working in the cooperative.














All of these ceramics are lead free--therefore safe to use with food-- plus they are dishwasher, microwave, and oven safe. And because they are high-fired, they're strong and don't easily chip. Which can't be said for most Mexican pottery. I personally own several pieces, including a coffee mug I use every day. Heat up your coffee in the microwave? No problem. Put it in the dishwasher? Comes out great. And what a nice piece of handmade art to hold in your hand to give you pleasure and inspiration, as you go about your daily routine. Each piece is signed by the individual coop member who painted it. The design on the right was made by Maria.
The sugar bowl below (you can use it for other items as well) features a handpainted scene of the rural landscape around Patamban. It was the landscapes that first attracted us to these artisans after seeing their large dinner plates in an upscale restaurant in Morelia.
Entire sets with 6 or 8 settings are also available, plus a variety of serving pieces.
But the fish motifs are really beautiful too!

Below are more examples of beautiful serving pieces: some small snack plates and a beautiful large platter.
We'll be exhibiting these and other lead free pottery at the San Francisco Green Festival on Nov. 6-7 in the Fair Trade section, booth 534. www.greenfestival.org.
To purchase online or for more information go to:
www.mexicobyhand.com.

Beautiful Bateas

The Michoacán town of Quiroga is named after the man the Purepecha Indians affectionately call Tata Vasco or great- grandpa. He was the Archbishop Vasco de Quiroga who in the 16th century established the crafts industry in so many pueblos in Michoacán, crafts which continue to this day.
What you see here is the artesania that actually comes from Quiroga: brightly painted bateas or wood plates. Most of what is sold in the souvenir shops that line the main street is not artesania and is not made by people in the town either, though there are some real artisans who live in pueblos just a few kilometers away. Quiroga is where one goes to eat the best carnitas, but it's not the place to go for fine crafts.
Except for this man, Antonio Anita Mejia, the last remaining artisan in Michoacán who does this work. I didn't use to pay much attention to the large bateas I would see at the various concursos (competitions) as I was more focused on the unusual, extremely laborious technique called maque. But I have new found appreciation for his work. Antonio makes those brightly painted chairs, and his trasteritos (little dish racks) are also wonderful. They have recently become one of my more popular items. The colors are lovely... each piece is vibrant and makes one happy just to look at it. But it's the brush strokes, obviously displaying a rare talent, that make this work special.
Trasteritos can easily be hung on the wall and are great for holding tequila glasses, spice jars, or toiletry items in the bathroom. I had fun painting one of these unfinished carved trasteritos to use in our house in Morelia. It worked as a shelf for our glasses, but wasn't nearly as beautiful as Antonio's. I wish I had known about him then.
I actually don't know a lot about Señor Anita, except I remember the first time we met--which was just last year-- he told me that he has been working to support himself since he was 12 years old. He has a wife and children in Quiroga who also help out with the business, which like most artesanos is located in the family home.

Click on the photos to enlarge. To purchase painted bateas and trasteritos, or unfinished ones to paint yourself, go to:
www.mexicobyhand.com.

The Flight to Michoacán

Did you know that millions are flying to the Mexican state of Michoacán right now, and they won't need to show a passport or have to be screened by airport security? Most of them are probably there already. " Every fall, huge numbers of Monarch Butterflies gather in southern Canada to migrate. Until recently, it was not known where these butterflies went. We now know that some Monarch butterflies travel over 3,100 kilometers, just to overwinter in places like Michoacán. These long flights pose great danger for the butterflies, especially from predators. But these little insects have something to teach us about resilience.
In 2002 heavy rains and extreme cold in Michoacan and the State of Mexico killed almost 80 percent of the Monarch butterflies there. Perhaps as many as 500 million butterflies died that year. But in 2002 the butterflies returned--in a big way. Between 200 million and 500 million Monarchs spent the winter in Michoacán before returning back to Canada and the eastern part of the U.S.

Those of us who are "in the know" and have had the opportunity to visit one of the Monarch sanctuaries experience something we can never forget. I had first learned about the Monarch's yearly journey to Mexico when I was teaching a lesson about them to my 4th grade students. The Monarch is state insect of California and we were studying the life cycle of the butterfly. A few years later I was living in Morelia, and of course was excited about seeing this place for my self. In March of 2004, after journeying to the Eastern Sierra (about 2 hours from Morelia) while taking in amazing views, and then traveling up a rocky hillside on horseback, my husband, Doug, our daughter, Jenny, and my two brave parents (who were in their 80's!) were treated to the thrilling sight of thousands of butterflies covering the trees and filling the air around us. (The photo below was taken on a previous trip in September to the hot springs called Los Azufres when the mirasoles are in full bloom.)I hadn't thought about that adventure for a while until I recently came across two environmental educators who organize tours for teachers and naturalists to Monarch Butterfly sanctuaries every February. It looks like a great trip-- I suggest you check them out and join them if you're looking for an adventure. Though February can be warm on the beaches of Mexico, it definitely isn't in the mountain area where the weather is always on the cool side. But if you usually experience blizzards that time of the year where you live, then I suggest you leave your snow parkas home and head for the hills of Michoacán. Just don't plan on wearing your bikini.

You can find out more about the Monarchs, see beautiful photos and learn more about the tours at http://www.monarchsacrossga.org/trips.php
UPDATE, Feb. 2010 reports on trip to Monarch sanctuaries:

http://www.learner.org/jnorth/monarch/spring2010/MAG_021810.html

http://www.learner.org/jnorth/monarch/spring2010/MAG_022510.html