Oaxaca stands out for its diverse gastronomy and culture with one of the country’s highest percentages and diversity of Indigenous populations These cultures are showcased in varied artesanías (handcrafts) or artes populares (popular arts) its craft is pottery made from a distinctive local black clay (barro negro) Tzompantlis, skull racks from Mexico’s pre-Columbian period, were common across several peoples, including the Maya and the Zapotec. Perhaps the best example is the one in Tenochtitlán (now Mexico City) With their striking display of neatly organized human skulls tzompantli have inspired many modern artistic interpretations including “El Mural de la Conquista” (“The Mural of the Conquest”) Artist Carlomagno Pedro Martínez created this work which was first displayed in Paris at the La Villet Cultural Center in 2002 The mural features a central tzompantli panel and makes symbolic use of other skulls subtitled “Apology of the Conquest,” five old women represent five centuries since the Spanish conquest The back shows a map of Mexico and two armed figures—one resembling a revolutionary from the early 1900s and another wearing a balaclava typical of the EZLN (Zapatista Army of National Liberation) Carlomagno’s Zapotec ancestry connects both revolutionary movements to contemporary Indigenous resistance The lower panel features skeletons with insect features above a skeleton representing Martín Cortés son of conquistador Hernán Cortés and his Indigenous interpreter Malintzin (also known as Malinche) often considered one of the first mestizo Mexicans This mix of peoples and cultures appears elsewhere on the mural like the upper panel where skeletons appear atop a Christian church and a pre-Columbian pyramid The side panels depict violent cultural clashes that ultimately forged a new Mexican culture Martínez is also the director of the State of Oaxaca Museum of Popular Art (MEAPO) which he helped establish through fundraising beginning in 1994 the museum reopened in its current location in 2004 showcasing not only San Bartolo Coyotepec’s distinctive barro negro The museum’s upper floor houses a mask collection many from coastal regions and featuring real animal elements like hair and horns The museum also has an active calendar of temporary exhibits showcasing up-and-coming artisans as well as established masters of their craft This mural of the late David Bowie features eight colorful panels showcasing Bowie’s various alter egos The ceiling of this shopping arcade is adorned with six trompe-l’œil artworks A mural recalls a fictional woman who once lived at 23 Quai du Commerce Local authorities nearly destroyed this mural before a viral video rallied international support to save it Keith Haring was arrested for painting this anti-drug mural on a Harlem handball court This 86,000-square-foot artwork is the largest mural in the world to cover a dam Hundreds of graffiti artists have decorated this flood-wall on the west bank of the Mississippi River The largest mural in the world painted by a single artist traditional black pottery is making a comeback as a sustainable alternative to throwaway plastics Artisans who use it to make Oaxaca’s famous barro negro But 66-year-old Amando Pedro Martínez is an exception Sparks crackle from the earth oven in his studio as I watch him reach into the still cooling kiln and pull out smooth ebony plates one by one Travelers arrive in tour buses to buy the iconic black pottery—but what tourists see isn’t exactly traditional (Here’s how paper crafts bring the party on Day of the Dead.) and plastics began to replace watertight black clay vessels artisans adapted to a changing market by introducing new shapes While these changes helped black pottery survive it has also compromised the community’s historic relationship to clay However, a new generation of artisans, including the cooperative Colectivo 1050° is steering black pottery back to its utilitarian roots they’re bringing attention to the ancient craft’s sophisticated design and inherent sustainability “Barro negro is the megafauna of Oaxacan pottery,” says Eric Mindling, documentary photographer and author of Fire and Clay: The Art of Oaxacan Pottery but its rise is dependent on a rich pottery ecosystem.” Mindling has visited more than 70 villages across Oaxaca and encountered at least as many variations of pottery style The earliest examples of black pottery were found in Monte Albán, a Mesoamerican Zapotec and Mixtec stronghold dating back to 500 B.C Situated roughly five miles southwest of Oaxaca City Monte Albán rises strategically at the point where Oaxaca’s three main valleys converge the Sierra Madre mountains rise and fall north to Puebla harbors at least 16 distinct ethnic groups that still practice a farming system known as milpa Oaxaca’s pottery evolved to perform distinct tasks related to milpa “The majority of Oaxacan pottery was made to absorb the thermal shock of cooking on top of a hot flame,” Mindling says San Bartolo Coyotepec pottery was different Fired in sealed underground ovens at high temperatures barro negro’s color and impervious clay body is a result of intense carbonization It’s suited to holding and transporting liquids—but not for cooking exchanging comals and ollas—griddles and pots for making tortillas and cooking beans In her home workshop in San Bartolo Coyotepec Graciela Simon López prepares to seal pottery pieces in a kiln heated to about 700°C (1292°F) The smoke and heat will turn the pieces black Oaxacan pottery has long been praised for its functionality and sophisticated design.María Francisca Gutiérrez and her daughter walk through their family’s garden in San Marcos Tlapazola a community that preserves Mexico’s indigenous Zapotec culture Besides maintaining their traditional dress and language the women and men of the village also practice a dynamic farming system called milpa that has long been tied to pottery production.San Bartolo Coyotepec’s clay economy and identity went on uninterrupted well into the 20th century Then a woman named Doña Rosa Real Mateo de Nieto arrived on the scene and changed the course of black pottery “Shiny pieces happen when the pottery is under-fired,” Pedro explains but Doña Rosa saw them as an opportunity.” By the late 1960s the use of tin and plastics was established in villages surrounding Oaxaca City these visitors gravitated toward lustrous jet-black pottery in Doña Rosa’s workshop Graciela Simon López extracts a recently fired clay skull from the kiln and other embellishments are etched onto pieces like this for Day of the Dead festivities.Doña Rosa seized the momentum and began carving patterns on pots and figures and firing them at lower temperatures to get the new look and the rest of the town followed her example and the shift from functional matte vessels to glossy decorative items was underway potters began using molds in lieu of hand-forming A tree-lined plaza next to the town’s 16th-century Mexican baroque church doubles as a barro negro bazaar where tour buses and day-trippers disembark to haggle over ebony candelabras and miniature skulls decorated with beautiful openwork designs life became easier because we aren’t working in the hot sun anymore,” Pedro says “But the desire to accumulate transformed the village (These artisan towns unlock the mystery of Japan’s perfect paper.) “In Oaxaca, clay represents a way of living. It’s practical, sustainable, and an example of good design,” says industrial designer Kythzia Barrera, who, along with Diego Mier y Terán, co-founded Innovando la Tradición and Colectivo 1050° sister organizations that collaborate with Indigenous potters to preserve traditional knowledge and skills “It’s got a short neck for tying the rope to lower it into a well egg-shaped body is ergonomically designed to tilt when it hits water The mouth is shaped to scoop up water and keep it in without spilling perfectly suited to the task with no excess waste And it’s a design that no doubt was worked out by the whole community María Cruz López adds water to red clay to begin the process of molding a comal (griddle).The Bartolo Jug created by Colectivo 1050° artisans is one of the cooperative’s best-selling barro negro pieces The group helps Indigenous ceramicists preserve traditional knowledge and skills.In San Marcos Tlapazola Griselda Mateo Gutiérrez uses a piece of quartz to burnish a shallow bowl made of local red clay She learned how to make pottery from her mother and aunts In Mexico where systemic obstacles persist “there is nothing more challenging than being an Indigenous woman,” says Barrera Clay is an integral part of Indigenous identity; for many Giving value to Indigenous pottery makers’ ancient system of producing and consuming in balance with the earth—what Barrera and Mier y Terán call the “artisan mindset”—is their core work “I don’t know when I lost the desire to make figurines,” says Pedro Attuned to the craft’s inherent sustainability he sees it as an antidote to plastic and pollution Joining Colectivo 1050° allowed for a fresh start he began making plates inspired by apastles (This artist reveals the growing amount of plastic waste littering the ocean.) Oaxaca’s explosive mezcal economy is also revisiting traditional black clay forms. Artisanal mezcal maker and cofounder of Mezcouting which runs mezcal tasting journeys in Oaxaca’s hinterlands Marco Ochoa Cortés grew up hearing stories of his grandfather leading donkeys laden with mezcal-filled black clay jars to the Pacific coast He recently discovered the family’s cache of old barro negro and is experimenting with reusing it for bottling and storage High-profile collaborations, such as with Danish chef Rene Redzepi There is a widespread perception of traditional pottery as unrefined and cheap pottery communities grapple with migration and the loss of cultural identity Colectivo 1050° and its mission to elevate the “artisan mindset” offer an alternative we will continue to make and use clay,” says Barrera Mariceu Erthal García is a Mexican photographer exploring the bridge between daily life and history through documentary and fine art photography. To see more of her work, follow her on Instagram A version of this story appears in the March 2022 issue of National Geographic magazine. Mariceu Erthal García is a Mexican photographer exploring the bridge between daily life and history through documentary and fine art photography. To see more of her work, follow her on Instagram A version of this story appears in the March 2022 issue of National Geographic magazine Rachna Sachasinh writes about travel and culture and has worked with artisan groups, including in Oaxaca. She is based in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Follow her on Instagram Mexico’s handcraft tradition is so much more than eye-catching wares displayed for sale on the street it is a testament to millennia of both history and aesthetic evolution Mexico’s best artisans do not simply have impeccable craftsmanship and the central valleys of Oaxaca certainly fit the bill along with outstanding handcraft and fine art traditions It also has a large cultural tourism industry providing a perfect marketplace for creators Carlomagno Pedro deserves recognition for a lifetime dedicated to breaking the barrier between handcrafts and fine art made famous in the mid-20th century by Rosa Real Mateo She put the town on the map internationally by learning to burnish the local clay to a shiny black and creating decorative objects called barro negro but rather than a biological son of the doña I had the pleasure of meeting him for the first time in 2016 at his workshop in Coyotepec When I told him that my students and I had created an article about him on Wikipedia but my grandchildren found the article and were very impressed that I was in it.”  But underneath his humble demeanor is a fire Leading Mexican folk art expert Marta Turok recounts that he was “a precocious child,” always asking questions and learning about the culture of his region’s culture His early training in barro negro was traditional although his father made (and still makes) figurines he began to experiment with the  possibilities that the clay represented decided to study fine art at the Rufino Tamayo Workshop in Oaxaca city has resulted in the interpretation of traditional themes of Oaxacan life and death in a much more nuanced way but these are not mere Day of the Dead decorations; they are expressions of how Pedro sees the world But working with clay did not open doors among Mexico’s artistic elite Turok met him around this time and notes that his attempts to participate in fine arts events were rejected until the highly regarded abstract artist Manuel Felguérez chastised his fellow artists for their narrow-mindedness including the National Presidency Youth Award and his work was praised by Francisco Toledo a fellow Oaxacan and one of Mexico’s greatest sculptors Pedro received Mexico’s highest honor for artisans the National Arts Prize (Popular Traditions category) for his work “elevating” Zapotec and Mixtec indigenous cultures Pedro says that winning the award vindicated all the struggles that he suffered throughout his decades as an artist fine art galleries and major art collections but his magnum opus is a 3-by-5-meter mural for the exterior of Oaxaca’s Baseball Academy in Coyotepec depicting the Mixtec version of the Mesoamerican ballgame the history of Coyotepec and a portrait of Babe Ruth Pedro’s contributions to Oaxacan culture do not stop with pottery When the state decided to open a folk art museum almost 20 years ago Coyotepec was chosen as the site and Pedro as its founding (and current) director The Museo Estatal de Arte Popular de Oaxaca has since sponsored hundreds of exhibitions Although the workshop is much larger than that of his parents it is still a simple affair — four cinder block walls and a roof under which to create the magic using nothing but his hands and a rudimentary potter’s wheel consisting of a plate balanced over a bowl a Mesoamerican technique unique to the region Turok sees Pedro’s work and legacy as invaluable to the barro negro tradition of Coyotepec “He portrays tradition but in a unique way that there are many paths to develop the art form.” Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico over 20 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture in particular its handcrafts and art. She is the author of Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta (Schiffer 2019) Her culture column appears regularly on Mexico News Daily ADVERTISE WITH MND COMMUNITY GUIDELINES Subscription FAQ's Privacy Policy Mexico News Daily - Property of Tavana LLC Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Best in Travel is here! Discover 2025’s destinations The 30 best countries, cities and regions to visit in 2025 Plan your trip with Elsewhere, by Lonely Planet See where a Lonely Planet Membership takes you Subscribe to our weekly newsletters to get the latest travel news, expert advice, and insider recommendations Explore the world with our detailed, insightful guidebooks Stay ahead of the curve with our guidebooks Uncover exciting new ways to explore iconic destinations Every month, we release new books into the wild Search Search Close search menu Explore Best in Travel 2024 Africa Close menu Countries Antarctica Antarctica Close menu Regions Asia Asia Close menu Countries Australia & the Pacific Australia & the Pacific Close menu Countries The Caribbean The Caribbean Close menu Countries Central America Central America Close menu Countries Europe Europe Close menu Countries Middle East Middle East Close menu Countries North America North America Close menu Countries South America South America Close menu Countries The world-famous weaving center of Teotitlán del Valle is only 20 minutes from Oaxaca City © Wolfgang Kaehler / LightRocket via Getty Images Oaxaca City has plenty to enthrall visitors – and day trips from this regional capital and cultural center complement any visit here Venturing out beyond the busy city promises a taste of old Oaxaca as ancient traditions come alive at rustic mezcal distilleries spirited artisan workshops and indigenous mountain communities that time forgot Here are some noteworthy getaways to explore the alluring environs of Oaxaca all just an easy day trip away from the big city A cluster of eight remote communities tucked away in the Sierra Norte mountains, the Pueblos Mancomunados (Commonwealth of Villages) provide the ideal setting for wilderness adventures on bike foot or horseback amid magnificent canyons Home to 400 bird species and thousands of plant varieties the cool cloud forest here is best experienced along some 60 miles of trails that connect the welcoming Zapotec towns all of which have no-frills cabins for rent and roadside cantinas whipping up hearty comfort food How to get to the Pueblos Mancomunados from Oaxaca Driving is the most convenient way to reach the villages lie about 1 hour and 25 minutes northeast of Oaxaca City turn left at the Oaxaca–Tlacolula Highway and head north Another option is Oaxaca City–based Expediciones Sierra Norte which operates shared vans to most of the towns and arranges guided hikes and tours There’s no shortage of downtown Oaxaca City stores selling barro negro (polished black pottery) and alebrijes (colorful wood-carved animal figures) – but nothing beats the experience of seeing these iconic wares taking shape in artisans’ studios dozens of workshops and homes dedicate themselves exclusively to the production of alebrijes where some larger sculptures can take up to 4 years to make Many of the surreal alebrijes are based on the sacred animals of Zapotec mythology On the return to Oaxaca, hit Alfarería Doña Rosa (after 4pm) in San Bartolo Coyotepec for a fascinating demonstration showing how black pottery is burnished with quartz stones to give it its distinctive luster How to get to San Martín Tilcajete and San Bartolo Coyotepec from Oaxaca Both towns are south of the city along Highway 175 Autobuses Halcón on Bustamante 606A has frequent bus departures to San Bartolo Coyotepec (30 minutes) will drop you at the San Martín Tilcajete (45 minutes) turnoff where it’s about 1 mile to the Jacobo & María Ángeles factory head for the majestic mountains of the remote Mixtec village of Santiago Apoala Wi-fi is spotty at best in these parts – but who needs it when you're hiking to a sublime 200-foot waterfall amid deep canyons with ancient rock carvings though the natural beauty and quiet calm make a strong case for an overnight excursion Community tour operator Ecoturismo Comunal Yutsa To’on rents affordable riverside cabins and runs guided hiking outings Santiago Apoala is about 2.5 hours northwest of Oaxaca City and is most conveniently reached by car Take Highway 135D to the town of Asunción Nochixtlán to access the bumpy dirt road to Santiago Apoala frequent Nochixtlán-bound buses depart from Oaxaca’s first-class bus station; from Nochixtlán hire a local taxi up to the village for about M$350 ($12.50) one way Oaxaca City-based Tierraventura offers 2-day tours to Santiago Apoala After taking in the spectacular panoramic views of Monte Albán (a must-visit while in Oaxaca City), head to the ancient Zapotec ruins of Mitla for sophisticated stone “mosaics” that are unique in Mexico (and the world) mosey on over to Restaurante Doña Chica for some exquisite mole before heading out to Santiago Matatlán Oaxaca’s capital of mezcal (a distilled alcoholic agave spirit) To learn about the production process, swing by craft distillery 3 Mezquites de Don Goyo where you can sample and purchase complex mezcals made from wild agaves If time permits, squeeze in a visit to Hierve el Agua and take a dip in cliffside mineral springs with expansive views over the sierra (Just make sure it’s open before you head there as Hierve el Agua regularly closes due to long-running political conflicts.) How to get to Mitla and Santiago Matatlán from Oaxaca Take Highway 190 east to reach Mitla (45 minutes) and Santiago Matatlán (55 minutes) The turnoff for San Baltazar Guelavila is about 8km south of Santiago Matatlán Hierve el Agua lies about 45 minutes southeast of Mitla (look for the turnoff along Highway 179) Tour operator Experience Agave runs day trips to distilleries in the Santiago Matatlán area and beyond Villagers in world-renowned Teotitlán del Valle have been weaving colorful rugs and blankets since pre-Hispanic times, and the craft is still very much alive today. As you make your way to Teotitlán, stop in the town of El Tule to marvel at the Árbol del Tule a 2,000-year-old Montezuma cypress tree that is said to have the world's widest trunk In Teotitlán del Valle, a fairly new community center houses a museum celebrating all things weaving leads weaving classes for anyone looking for a more hands-on experience while cooking courses are available at El Sabor Zapoteco should you like to learn how to prepare classic Zapotec dishes How to get to Teotitlan del Valle from Oaxaca To reach El Tule (20 minutes) and Teotitlán del Valle by car Mitla-bound buses depart frequently from the second-class bus station; they’ll usually drop you along the highway Or simply hail a taxi colectivo (shared taxi) in Oaxaca near the first-class bus station You might also like:Ten places to grab lunch on a budget in OaxacaMezcal three ways: ten great places to get mezcal in OaxacaMexico's best off-the-grid-beaches Residents of San Bartolo Coyotepec contruct an oven with the participation of an Unitierra representative As a university student in the United States I’ve always thought of “education” and “learning” as synonyms That’s an assumption that got turned upside down during the five weeks I spent this summer in Oaxaca Mexico,  investigating alternative education methods among indigenous people The educators I observed there called what they were doing “participant education.” While each group had a slightly different definition of the concept certain things stayed consistent everywhere I went people have a greater control over how they learn and what they learn compared to the formal model of classroom education Learning should center on meaningful dialogue between people to question the existing world who was an avid promoter of redefining what education and learning can mean called this kind of decentralization the “opportunity web.” The four-part web stresses dialogue and skill-sharing between people of different classes and people finding other people with like interests or useful knowledge to help facilitate their learning learning should center on meaningful dialogue between people to question the existing world in order to reinvent meaning and purpose In order to help you envision this process I am going to describe an example in which participant educators facilitated the building of a clay oven in a village outside Oaxaca I’d like to put these projects in context by talking about what education has been expected to do In Mexican history Modern education in Mexico begins with the Liberal Party’s victory over the Conservatives in the 1861 Reform War a native Zapotec from the Sierra of Oaxaca as the first freely elected president of Mexico Mexico consisted of countless groups that spoke different languages and had different goals about the future of the nation The Juarez administration sought to design an education system that would unify these groups and teach them basic skills education in Mexico was dismal in terms of quality and results especially among poor and indigenous groups Freedom to LearnUnitierra founder Gustavo Esteva tells the story of how this educational network came to be Juarez built more schools and overhauled existing curriculums which up until that point had been created almost exclusively by the Catholic Church and a myriad of other fields with the goal of creating a more enlightened citizen of Mexico A secondary effect of this plan was to decrease the power and influence of the Catholic Church the church had been the largest untaxed landowner and the largest creator of schools in which it propagated Catholic teachings and the fear of God The Juarez administration attacked that power through legislation such as the Ley Lerdo which forced the church to sell off its land holdings the indigenous groups Juarez wanted to educate quickly became his greatest problem Indigenous groups wanted to retain their ways of life while the federal government wanted to replace these with a singular Mexican culture multiple cultures and languages hindered efforts to establish a singular national identity the indigenous communities resisted the coercive forces of the Juarez administration in trying to implant reforms onto their communities Schools and teachers were forcibly pushed into communities which were often expected to pay for construction of the school and the salaries of the teachers The 1844 legislation passed by the Juarez administration required that towns disclose their community budgets and finances to the federal government for the purpose of finding out how much money they had to erect state schools This back and forth continued through several more administrations and has been a major factor pitting the federal government against the indigenous populations of Mexico The tensions between educational models are only one of the reasons why many of the indigenous groups of Mexico harbor skepticism toward the federal government One of the products of that skepticism has been a movement to build schools that are a better match with indigenous values and lifeways One of these schools is the Universidad de la Tierra an alternative university stationed in the heart in Oaxaca City has become a model in alternative education The school emphasizes informal education and the apprenticeship method instead of the “traditional” model of the teacher-student relationship While the Unitierra offices can act as a learning commons for students working on apprenticeships through Unitierra the school is also active in promoting a learning-by-doing approach to education at the request of the communities classes at Unitierra have no fixed location of education Though there is one main building in Oaxaca City where forums within the community are held and students can come to learn Unitierra also can provide a learning experience to students where they live and work by coming to them participants have complete control over what and how they decide to learn Esteva believes that this method facilitates a more organic learning pattern and results in better and more detailed retention of information which can then be readily passed on to another curious student a former advisor to the Zapatista Army for National Liberation (EZLN) has been a tremendous force for alternative education and the promotion of intercultural dialogue the young Esteva began working at IBM at the age of 15 as a result of a series of educational programs made possible by the recent implementation of President Harry Truman’s Point Four program Esteva left IBM and the private sector after seeing the kind of damage that the major corporations were doing to Mexico and its people Esteva had been appointed to a position as minister in the cabinet of President Luis Echeverría a member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) who had run on a populist platform Unsettled by the reality of being placed in a legislative position that disconnected him from the people he was helping to govern Esteva’s interests began to move towards the grassroots efforts and organization As a result of an invitation to a seminar in 1983 in Mexico City Esteva met the philosopher and educational theorist were a brilliant intellectual presentation of ordinary people’s common discourse,” Esteva recalls The two began collaborating in the years to come The conception of Unitierra came as a result of concluding that no matter how much curriculums were modified or how creative the teachers were the school as an institution created many of the problems in education Preapproved course material that did not have much application in the real world was among the greatest issues combined with the need for a degree in order to be considered certified to complete a task I shadowed a Unitierra worker named Alberto to an education site (I have changed his name to protect his privacy) had requested the services of Unitierra for an oven-building project Unitierra works with communities in and around Oaxaca to promote environmentally friendly works and community building exercises volunteerism is the driving philosophy; no one is forced to attend these workshops but the hope is that their service will act as a learning experience for the participants and an opportunity to learn and share a new skill The women also discussed the aesthetic and artistic design of the stove and provided suggestions to the wife based on what they thought would look good The project was construction of an energy-efficient adobe stove designed to reach and maintain optimal cooking heat levels while burning less wood Alberto was the designated “expert” (another worker’s word—not mine) on this particular stove and was going to this community to help show the family and members of the community how to build one We arrived at the village and made our greetings as the 19 participants trickled onto the worksite All the people were immediate family and members of the health committee one of the many community-run organizations within the San Bartolo group After a few more introductions to the group The women began discussing the different ways in which the stove could be organized Other housewives shared how their own stoves were set up and arranged for optimal cooking The women also discussed the aesthetic and artistic design of the stove and provided suggestions to the wife based on what they thought would look good the men conversed casually with one another as they began moving dirt and adobe bricks to the site both groups were talking and busily laying out bricks and mud and moving parts around until an agreement was made on what should go where Four hours had passed and the yard was full of conversation and deliberation while busy hands put mud and brick into place with little to no intervention from the Unitierra workers Everyone who’d chipped in stood tall on the lawn of this family the people’s pride and happiness with what they had accomplished couldn’t have been clearer to me This was just one example of participant education that I observed in my time in Oaxaca Education and learning have become synonymous to many of us the two words have vastly separate meanings The limitations of this model exist only at the limits of an individual’s own curiosities To the indigenous communities and groups that cannot afford formal education in Mexico or have rejected the state’s program this model provides an opportunity to gain a new skill or a new perspective and an understanding of how to use it in a real situation rather than a hypothetical one This kind of education stresses the learning process and the acquisition of practical skilss over the degree itself The learning process and skills gained is the ends not just a means to a degree or certification Anyone can take part in his or her own informal education The limitations of this model exist only at the limits of an individual’s own curiosities Any person can learn a new skill by themselves or someone can help facilitate this process but it is the process and the practical outcome that make this approach so starkly different than the formal model of education It is daunting to imagine what results might would come if this method of education was as widely promoted as widespread as the formal one and what would come from a world that taught itself and shared ideas openly Mike Emiliani wrote this article for YES! Magazine nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions The leading authority for the Architecture & Design community Recharge in a Restored Spanish Farmhouse in Menorca Born in Austria from an Austrian mother and a Mexican father, designer David Pompa grew up in and currently works between both countries After earning a master’s degree in product design at Kingston University in London Always exploring new techniques to create unique objects the designer—who is passionate about Mexican culture—uses materials such as red travertine; fiorito a light gray-colored natural stone quarried in Puebla; cantera rosa a volcanic rock from Zacatecas; barro negro black clay from San Bartolo Coyotepec in Oaxaca; talavera traditional hand painted ceramic produced in Puebla; tropical wood from Mexico; brass; and hand-blown glass Pompa shares insights on the design scene in Mexico advice for those starting out in the field and the inspiration behind the new pieces in the Can and Cupallo collection.  Interior Design: What is your first memory of design David Pompa: I was about 16 years old the first time I visited Milan Design Week and the experience was incredible Looking at so many objects and the positive vibe all over the city was captivating I think it’s the concentrated emotion of everything that is great in our profession—working with other creative minds and let’s not forget the joy and love for what we do ID: How do your Austrian and Mexican origins impact your design approach DP: I believe the biggest influence is our personal experiences and the way we perceive and interact with the world. Both backgrounds give me different perspectives on how to approach our work and solve problems ID: Can you name some people in the industry who inspire you DP: We find our inspiration in interdisciplinary work and collaborative approaches Herzog & de Meuron are architects who represent new chains of thoughts ID: What was your overall design goal for the new pieces of your Can and Cupallo collections and recycled hand-blown glass are very nice materials with great aesthetical characteristics We have been working with them since the beginning of our studio’s journey and we wanted to celebrate them with new objects that enhance their material qualities The Can vase represents a close connection with nature and its earth-related process The Cupallo vase creates an interaction with its surrounding through reflections and transparencies ID: What type of materials do you like to use in your creations and why the most attractive it is to us to work with Any material that we decide to work with implies a process of uncovering its true potential The story behind each material is extremely valuable and inspires us in many ways the first time we got in contact with barro negro we were attracted by its honest attributes Its history goes back hundreds of years and it is deeply embedded in Mexican culture through very traditional objects It became a challenge for us to bring this amazing material to a contemporary context ID: How has the Mexico design scene evolved for the past 10 years The country reflects an interesting combination between its heritage and its fast-growing creative scene This approach to cultural richness has increased over the past years. Every piece we create has a distinct relationship to Mexico; all materials arise from traditions and regional processes. Not all our materials are Mexican ‘at first sight,’ but we like to be able to show a new face of Mexico and reveal new traditions that are not always obvious ID: How do you envision the future of design in Mexico and in Latin America in general DP: Mexico and Latin America have the advantage of being a blank piece of paper There is a lot of room to create and many tools to work with People from these countries are ingenious by nature adapting to circumstances in the most creative ways This gives opportunities to new ways of thinking and producing I have been living for more than 10 years in this apartment so it has grown and changed together with me My favorite room is the one that welcomes the sunset every day; the light is beautiful.  DP: Something I tell young people a lot is that academic titles won’t get you anywhere What matters is what you can do and the enthusiasm that you have for what you do ID:  When you feel that you need to find inspiration and planning and decision-making are part of our everyday work Changing tasks and not putting pressure on the creative process help the ideas to be in the right place at the right moment Mexico’s handcrafts are folk art in the truest sense of the word Influenced by changes going on around them ordinary people living and working outside of vaunted artistic circles reinterpret culture and traditions that can be millennia old Sometimes that innovator is even “just a housewife.” San Bartolo Coyotepec is a pottery town located in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca — three valleys that join together at the state capital The state has a strong international reputation for handcrafts and indigenous cultures but San Bartolo’s barro negro (black clay) more than holds its own here Barro negro pottery has been important economically and culturally in San Bartolo for centuries with examples found in various local archaeological sites The local clay had been used primarily to make storage containers particularly for liquids such as water and mezcal Such containers are still made from small monkey-shaped bottles with cork or corn-cob stoppers to giant lidded amphoras called tibors Barro negro clay has some unique properties Fired containers are impermeable and resistant to knocks which made them highly suited for storage and transport The color was always a matte gray — not very aesthetic making it suitable at times as a musical instrument barro negro might have disappeared from San Bartolo if it weren’t for the ingenuity of one woman with good timing Born Rosa Real Mateo (with “de Nieto” added after marriage) one of many traditional women living and working in the home here she discovered on her own that if she rubbed a nearly dry piece of barro negro clay with a smooth stone before firing the result was a shiny black instead of a dull gray finish What she (re)discovered was a very old technique called burnishing which other Mesoamerican pottery makers had used to give a shine to their wares It is likely that someone discovered the same thing earlier but burnishing this particular clay has its downsides Burnished barro negro is more fragile and porous meaning that although the jars look a lot nicer Oaxaca began to share in Mexico’s booming tourism industry But instead of focusing on its hard-to-get-to beaches Oaxaca promoted its indigenous and traditional cultures which includes a wide variety of handcrafts This meant that many of them would not disappear but the demand for decorative items meant that they would change Doña Rosa’s experiments fit with this new market for visitors wanting to take a piece of Oaxaca home with them In her book Mexican Folk Art: From Oaxacan Artist Families Arden Rothstein recounts having the privilege of seeing Doña Rosa at work in the 1960s she earned renown for her expertise in creating beautiful forms and applying [a] quartz [stone] to the clay before firing,” she said but not before her workshop became a mecca for famous admirers such as Nelson Rockefeller and former American president Jimmy Carter Her work recreated the town’s pottery industry which now boasts over 300 workshops dedicated just to barro negro Doña Rosa’s family still runs her workshop but there is a large sign indicating the turnoff as you enter on the highway from the city of Oaxaca It has one of the largest selections of decorative items in a wide range of styles Different family members specialize in different kinds of pieces Decorative objects are the lifeblood of the town, but some creators have taken barro negro into the realm of art. The other important ceramic family in town is the Pedros, headed by notable artist Carlomagno Pedro His education in pottery was begun by his parents but he also took artistic training at the Tamayo Museum in the city of Oaxaca The extra education is evident in his designs He does everything from miniatures to full wall murals such as the one at the Oaxaca Baseball Academy His work has been exhibited as both art and handcraft in Mexico and abroad and his fame led to becoming the director of MEAPO Oaxaca’s state-sponsored handcraft museum in San Bartolo The Doña Rosa and Pedro families dominate barro negro pottery with dozens of them becoming notable in their own right One of these is Abdiel Cardozo Calderón, who can be reached at [email protected]. Most of his work is related to his Zapotec heritage but reinterpreted as works of art, not folklore. For almost a decade, his work has been recognized and promoted by the New York-based Friends of Oaxacan Folk Art whose website is a valuable resource for background and contact information about outstanding barro negro and other Oaxacan artisans Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico 17 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture. She publishes a blog called Creative Hands of Mexico and her first book, Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta, was published last year Her culture blog appears regularly on Mexico News Daily View upcoming auction estimates and receive personalized email alerts for the artists you follow Collectors seeking traditional black pottery or painted wooden figures can arrange visits to the homes and workshops of the artisans Here’s our guide to the featured crafts from the state of Oaxaca Support your favorite artisans! Because the pandemic discourages travel, many of our artisan friends are selling online. Planeta.com will be updating our Folk Art and Where to Buy Oaxaca crafts pages.Special kudos to our friend weaver / photographer Verónica Lazo Mendoza ¡Apoya a tus artesanos favoritos! Debido a que la pandemia desalienta los viajes, muchos de nuestros amigos artesanos venden en línea. Planeta.com actualizará nuestras páginas de Arte Popular y Dónde comprar artesanías de Oaxaca la tejedora / fotógrafa Verónica Lazo Mendoza Craft-making TownsSan Agustin Etla – With two paper-making workshops in San Agustin Etla Oaxaca may be witnessing the birth of a cottage industry.Santa Ana del Valle – Tour this market town 34 kilometers EAST of Oaxaca City The town has a museum with various archaeological objects as well as examples of weaving techniques and natural dyes Teotitlan Del Valle – Make sure you make time to visit this village which specializes in rug weaving. Dozens of weavers open their workshops to the public. Read more. San Bartolo Coyotepec – The town is famous for its black pottery Visit the new museum of popular art and the white market on the west side of the highway San Martin Tilcajete – Family homes and workshops producing the famous wooden figures are spread out troughout town La Union Tejalapam – Known for its production of alebrijes this town boasts a great landscape for biking Getting there from Oaxaca City: Head north and past the town of Brenamiel but before the start of the new highway (nueva carretera) take a left where there’s a sign post for San Lorenzo Cacaotepec San Antonino Castillo Velasco – Located near Ocotlán de Morelos this town produces embroidered dresses using silk and cotton in a detailed fashion that requires several months to complete San Antonio Arrazola – This is the cradle of the wooden figures or alebrijes Rugs (Tapetes) — The Zapotecs call their weavings laadi and you’ll find beautiful rugs in Santa Ana del Valle and Teotitlán del Valle Wool rugs made in the weaving villages are popular around the world you can purchase the rugs at the following markets in Oaxaca City: Artesania Textiles — Woven textiles — blouses tableclothes — are very popular in Oaxaca Look for cotton products produced on back-strap looms in Santo Tomás Jalieza and quality embroidery in San Antonino Castillo Velasco near Ocotlán Wooden Figures (Alebrijes) — San Martin Tilcajete San Antonio Arrazola and La Union Tejalapam the brightly colored carvings are a recent addition to folk arts are among the best-selling Mexican folk art in the world Alebrijes are monster-type figures that were developed in the style of popular paper mache figures In the towns of San Martin Tilcajete and San Antonio Arrazola the figures are carved from the twisted branches of the copal tree The wood has a particular fragrance and its resin has been burned in ceremonial incense burners for thousands of years Pottery (Ceramica) — Atzompa A few words about buying crafts in OaxacaPricing — Prices vary depending on the quality of the product and where you make your purchase prices in Oaxaca City’s Mercado de Artesanias are generally no higher than what you find in artisan homes Shipping — Most craft shops can pack your purchases for shipment So if you see something fragile you’d like to get home in one piece ask if they can pack the materials securely Go on your own — If you go to craft villages on your own Many package tours insist on a commission (paid from the artisan to the guide) and rates can go up to 40% not a show,” says one tourism expert For more info— Shoppers interested in understanding how traditional craft production fits in to conscientious travel and ecotourism should review our guide to Tourism and Crafts Headlineshttps://www.orartswatch.org/richard-keis-photographing-the-craftspeople-of-oaxaca/ Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 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Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" Theme: NewsUp by Themeansar Two armed robbery suspects and a bus passenger died in México state Thursday morning after other passengers on the bus apparently rose up against a pair of alleged would-be robbers who had tried to steal their belongings El Universal newspaper reported that while the bus was traveling on the Mexico City–Querétaro highway a pair of thieves began shouting threats and shooting off firearms in the bus wounding an unidentified male passenger whom police described as in his 60s he died on the bus before the driver could contact police Police said they believe that after the man was wounded some of the passengers eventually managed to overcome the pair and shoot them routinely travels between México state and Mexico City The incident took place between Coyetepec and the Metro Polytechnic and Metro Valle subway stations in Mexico City After passengers threw the bodies off the bus witnesses say the driver continued until reaching the Tepotzotlán toll plaza where the passengers exited the bus to find other connections and the driver notified authorities One recent tally of robberies with violence on public transit in the state revealed there had been on average 19 per day since January Source: El Universal (sp) Click 'OK' then 'Allow' to enable notifications A father managed to defied all the odds by rescuing his kidnapped daughter following a 'real-life Taken' situation For those who are unaware, the Taken series is one of the most loved action-thrillers to have ever been released The star of the show is very much Liam Neeson who plays Bryan Mills - a former government operative trying to reconnect with his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) his worst fear becomes a reality as human traffickers abduct Kim and her friend meaning Bryan must carry out every single thing he learnt in the black ops to rescue her Well, the harrowing plot turned into a reality for a Californian man whose daughter went on a bike ride one afternoon and did not return Bryce Weiner was living in a quiet neighborhood where moments of crime are very much few and far between However, in August 2010, Weiner's 14-year-old daughter was manipulated by an individual into crossing the Mexican border The kidnapper also revoked all of the teen's access to cellular devices essentially meaning she was unable to contact anyone She eventually ended up 3,000 miles away from home was kept in a place where she couldn't go outside and had no money Weiner's daughter was beaten and psychologically abused in harrowing circumstances The authorities were not of much help to the devastated dad either as she was technically not taken 'strictly against her will' Rather than treating the incident as a kidnapping local authorities dubbed it as an 'endangered runaway' Three years went by with no answers forthcoming for Weiner so he eventually decided to take matters into his own hands by driving 5,000 miles from Los Angeles to Coyotepec with Weiner pretending to be a deaf 'beggar' in order to deter attention the man's daughter managed to escape in the middle of the night but she had no knowledge her father was in Mexico the teen remarkably ran barefoot to the US embassy where she was finally reunited with Weiner after three traumatic years Weiner told the 'real-life Taken' story on social media penning on Facebook in November 2013: "To all those who gave up or told me it was impossible… You were wrong." He also addressed the situation on X in 2021 writing: "My daughter disappeared from our quiet suburban neighborhood in August of 2010 and the State Department I travelled 5,000 miles into Mexico and did what everyone said was impossible Topics: News, World News, US News