Category Archives: Clothing Design

From Oaxaca to San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas: Preview

Posted on Tuesday, January 31, 2012 | 6 Comments

Palenque, photo by Roberta Christie

On Tuesday night January 31, I will be on the ADO-GL overnight bus to San Cristobal de las Casas, set to arrive mid-morning on Wednesday, February 1. This is at least a 12-hour bus trip, and I’ll be traveling with Fay, a Canadian woman from an island off the coast of Vancouver. Since this is my first trip to Chiapas, my friend Roberta shared her photos of what I might expect.

I also rely on recommendations from friend Sheri Brautigam and her terrific website Living Textiles of Mexico for advice. Sheri is passionate about the huipiles and other textiles of Chiapas and I want to experience some of what she has discovered there. I’ve spent some time in Guatemala, have a few pieces I’ve collected, and attended related exhibitions at the Museo Textil de Oaxaca. So, I’m familiar with the type of brocade weaving on back strap looms that brings Chiapas recognition as one of the great textile centers of the world.

First, some bus ticket buying advice for foreigners (that’s people like me who don’t have a Mexican bank-issued credit card). 1) Find a Mexican friend with a credit card to buy your ticket online and then pay him/her back. 2) Go in advance, in-person to the bus station (4-7 days before you want to go) and buy your ticket with a U.S. bank-issued credit card or cash.

From Oaxaca to SCDLC you have three options for class of service.

1) OCC (452 pesos one-way) leaves daily, is a first class bus with one toilet and can accommodate 44 passengers. Seats do not fully recline.

2) ADO-GL (542 pesos, one-way) leaves several times a week, has 40 seats and two toilets, for women and men.

3) ADO Platino (726 pesos) is the highest level of service with 25 seats that fully recline, internet service, electrical outlets for PDAs/computers at each seat, and two toilets. According to the schedule, it gets there faster, too. ADO Platino is only in service Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from Oaxaca city to San Cristobal de las Casas.

In my “freedom” mode, I bought a one-way ticket. My plan is to also see two major Mayan archeological sites: first, Palenque and then Bonampak, where there are incredible murals, located near the Guatemala border. I don’t really need to get back to Oaxaca until mid-February. So, stay tuned for the next adventures!

Bonampak mural, courtesy of Roberta Christie

I traveled to the Yucatan to visit Chichen Itza and Uxmal in the early 1970′s along rough, pot-holed dirt roads. The sites were spectacular. It was a real treat to climb to the top of the pyramids and look out across the jungle. My son, who recently went to Chichen Itza, says this is no longer possible. Then, my dream was to get to all the major sites: Tikal, Palenque and Copan. In the 90′s I climbed to the top of the highest Tikal temple on a hand-over-hand ladder attached vertically to the side of the building — two days in a row! I loved it there. Now, I’m getting closer to the early dream.

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Posted in Clothing Design, Cultural Commentary, Textiles, Tapestries & Weaving, Travel & Tourism

Tagged blogsherpa, Bonampak, bus travel, Chiapas, Mexico, Oaxaca, Palenque, San Cristobal de las Casas, textiles, tickets

More Than 36 Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico — Shopping & Galleries

Posted on Monday, January 23, 2012 | 2 Comments

Where to Shop and Galleries

The list that I sent to Freda Moon, The New York Times travel writer who created the feature 36 Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico, included some of my favorite places to see art, shop and explore. Of course, it would have been impossible for Freda to include them all. Nevertheless, I’m sharing with you what I sent to her.

Galeria Fe y Lola, NEW Av. 5 de Mayo #408, authentic, beautiful weavings (rugs, wall hangings, handbags, scarves) made only with natural dyes. A family-owned, small production workshop is located in Teotitlan del Valle. Most rugs available in city gallery. Weaving demonstrations can be scheduled. Most days you can find La Dueña Dolores (Lola) Santiago Arrellanas there. Call ahead to be sure they are open. (951) 524-4078 or 044 (951)130-2481. Not in any guidebook.

Call painter and assemblage artist Humberto Bautista for an appointment to personally visit to his studio on Porfirio Diaz. (951) 516-0100. Not in any guidebook. Humberto and his colleague Mari Seder teach Oaxaca arts workshops.

“Tirso Cuevas” Hojalata – NEW hand-hammered tin boxes, picture frames, sculpture, lamps, mirrors, hearts, and trinkets along with contemporary art gallery by some of Oaxaca’s best young artists, tucked into old 17^th century historic building needing renovation at the corner of Reforma and Abasolo (enter on Abasolo). Tirsocuevas-hojalata@hotmail.com. Open Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., 4 p.m.-7 p.m. Closed 2-4 p.m. for lunch.

Talleres Comunitarios de Zegache, NEW hand-carved wood mirrors embellished in gold and silver leaf in traditional European technique. Gallery supports young people in Santa Ana Zegache, Ocotlan. Open M-F, 10a – 8p, Av. 5 de Mayo #412, Plaza Lucero, (in the back of the patio) behind Black Box Gallery. www.proyectozegache.com

Museo Textil de Oaxaca, NEW Hidalgo #917 at the corner of Fiallo, two blocks from the Zocalo, open 7 days. This is the ONLY textile museum in Mexico. Includes a preservation/restoration unit. The best of the best! Rotating exhibits, openings, great gallery shop. English-language tours offered. (951) 501-1104. Opened in 2009.

Los Baules –Remigio Mestas Collections, fabulous textiles from throughout Oaxaca state; in the courtyard of Los Danzantes restaurant on Macedonio Alcala. Enter next to Oro de Monte Alban. Like a museum collection. Remigo is the “go-to” curator for the best of the best. cbram@prodigy.net.mx

El Nahual Gallery, NEW Av. 5 de Mayo, right next door to Galeria Fe y Lola. Great collection of carved alebrijes, pottery, textiles, sterling silver jewelry personally selected by proprietors Alejandrina Rios and her husband award-winning Saltillo-style weaver Erasto “Tito” Mendoza. (951) 204-2381 or 516-4202 or elnahual75@prodigy.net.mx

Oaxaca State Artisans Collective, Av. Garcia Virgil, up the hill almost to the ancient aquaduct, past the restaurant Casa del Tio Guero. If you can make it this far, it’s worth it. Great selection, great quality handcrafts, good prices, but out of the way.

Step down into the little shop Artesanias, owned by Senor Francisco Jesus Hernandez Perez, on Constitucion between 5 de Mayo and Reforma. Ask to see the tissue paper collages. They are whimsical, colorful, special.

Fabricante de Joyerîa Oaxaqueña in the Mercado de Artesanias, corner J.P. Garcia and Zaragoza. Margarita Pérez Antonio and her daughter Luz Esmeralda Bautista Péres sell exquisite back-strap loom-woven and needle-point embroidered huipiles and other textiles, plus a great selection of antique-style silver filagree earrings. Norteño women in the know shop here. Good price to quality ratio. email: joyasdeoaxaca_2000@yahoo.com.mx or cellular 044 (951) 516-6375.

As of this writing, the exchange rate is 13.2 pesos to the dollar. Everything is a fantastic buy. In my humble opinion, there is no need to bargain in this environment that is favorable to the tourist. Bargaining tends to be a more acceptable practice on the street that from a gallery owner or shopkeeper! However, keep in mind, that prices are low to start with and we are doing our part to help support artists and artisans whose work is extraordinary.

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Posted in Clothing Design, Jewelry, Oaxaca Mexico art and culture, Travel & Tourism

Tagged art, artisans, blogsherpa, buy, collect, folk art, galleries, Mexico, Oaxaca, rugs, shopping, tapetes

The New York Times 36 Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico Back-story

Posted on Thursday, January 19, 2012 | 4 Comments

Freda Moon, travel writer for The New York Times, contacted me on July 29, 2011 to say she was working on a feature about Oaxaca. Travel information about the city hadn’t been updated at the NY Times since 2007 and Freda thought it was about time. Her editor agreed! Freda was leaving for Oaxaca the next week, found this website/blog during her research, liked our in depth coverage, and asked me to offer suggestions for new favorite places on the city scene.

During her time in Oaxaca, Freda discovered spots I hadn’t even heard about (including those mescal venues that become lively long after my bedtime). At my suggestion, she connected with Brown University linguistic anthropologist Liza Bakewell, author of Madre: Perilous Journey with a Spanish Noun and they talked about city life.

Now, it’s nearly impossible, as many of the commenters to the article have said, to cover all that is wonderful in Oaxaca and village environs in 36 hours. The two Puertos on the coast (Escondido, Angel), Juchitan, the Sierra Mixteca (and more) all offer unique and extraordinary experiences. Three weeks would be more like it. Or even 36 weeks! Freda could not have included everything in her short article — either all my suggestions or those made by others!

So in a series of posts to come, I’m going to share with you what I shared with Freda Moon, starting with my favorite restaurants.

Disfruta! Enjoy!

And, if you love Oaxaca, please share The New York Times 36 Hours: Oaxaca, Mexico on your Facebook page and via email. The indigenous people and artisans of Oaxaca will love and appreciate you for it! They depend upon tourism for their major source of income.

Oaxaca Safety: It’s also important to read the COMMENTS section on Freda’s article to hear first hand about how Oaxaca is SAFE and inviting — heard from visitors who have come back here many times and those of us who live here.

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Posted in Books & Resources, Clothing Design, Cultural Commentary, Oaxaca recipes, Textiles, Tapestries & Weaving

Tagged 36 Hours, art, blogsherpa, culture, Freda Moon, Mexico, Oaxaca, The New York Times, travel

Cows, Pigs, Calaveras: Carved Wood Figures of Placido Santiago Cruz

Posted on Friday, January 13, 2012 | Leave a comment

This week I was in Oaxaca city for two days visiting with silversmiths Brigitte Huet and Ivan Campant! I went with them to present their work at Susanna Trilling’s Seasons of My Heart Cooking School in San Lorenzo Cacaotepec. This mecca of the culinary arts is located about 40 minutes from the city in the lush countryside where farmers continue to plow their fields with wood plows harnessed to hefty oxen. (This is also the same village where Irma Paula Garcia Blanco from Atzompa gets her black clay.)

Here I met Placido Santiago Cruz who was also invited to show his work to the class participants. It is a blessing to independent local artists and artisans to be able to do this because there are limited opportunities to meet a group of visitors who may be interested in collecting their work.

Señor Santiago Cruz is one of the earliest and original folk artists from the village of La Union Tejalapam. There is joy, color and humor in his copal wood figures that capture the essential commentary of pueblo life. His style is indicative of alebrijes as they were first carved, much different from the highly stylized and ornamental figures of most carvers today. His repertoire includes barnyard animals such as cows, pigs, horses and goats, as well as Nativity scenes, and the Virgin of Guadalupe praying over a fallen angel. Señor Santiago Cruz does the carving and his wife, Señora Alfonsa Cruz López, finishes each piece by sanding it smooth and then painting it. This is a team effort between husband and wife that is typical in small, independent carving families in this village as well as in Arrazola and San Martin Tilcajete.

Señor Santiago Cruz has carved for 40 years. He began carving at the side of an older brother who taught him how to work with the machete, knife, and the copal wood that had been softened in water to make it more malleable. Over the years, he has gained recognition as one of the outstanding carvers of the region. His work is featured in Arden Rothstein’s bible, Oaxaca Folk Art. He is in collected by Henry Wegeman and Rosa Blum, owners of Amate Books on Macedonio Alcala, and his work is offered for sale in El Nahual Gallery on Av. 5 de Mayo in Oaxaca City.

Prices are incredibly reasonable for these lovely pieces that are quintessentially Oaxaca. Owls are 100 pesos. The small animal heads, perfect for wall adornment, are 150 pesos. Animal musicians are 200 pesos. The Virgin of Guadalupe is 350 pesos as is the Calavera (whimsical skeleton) with pineapple head-dress. The entire nativity scene is 2,000 pesos and it includes 10 pieces. As of this writing, the exchange rate is about 13.5 pesos to the dollar. Great folk art is still a bargain in Oaxaca!

If you want to ride out to La Union to visit el maestro (about a 50 minute taxi ride from the city), call ahead and make an appointment. Connecting with the artist directly is an extraordinary experience. And the artisans here depend upon selling their carved wood figures as their primary source of cash income, since La Union is not a farming community. Placido Santiago Cruz, La Union Tejalapam, Etla, Oaxaca, cellular 044 951 106 0983.

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Posted in Books & Resources, Carved Figures, Clothing Design, Oaxaca Mexico art and culture, Travel & Tourism

Tagged alebrijes, blogsherpa, Carved Figures, copal wood, Mexico, Oaxaca

When Indigenous Oaxaca Dress Becomes Inspiration for High Fashion

Posted on Monday, November 14, 2011 | 2 Comments

Years ago I discovered Mexican designer Carla Fernandez and her sweet little book (out of print) that taught me the difference between indigenous and Western clothing design. Rather than form fitting construction with darts, waistbands, zippers, buttons and collars, pre-European style clothing of the Americas is made for easy fit and comfort. The emphasis is on the weaving techniques and designs integrated into the fabric or embroidered rather than the cut.

[Left: Odillon, owner of Arte Amusgo, a cooperative on Calle 5 de Mayo in the historic center of Oaxaca, holds an intricately handwoven huipil. The pattern is woven, not embroidered, as part of the cloth. This one sells for about 7,000 pesos.]

Indigenous clothing is flowing, soft, loose, relaxed. Slip-it-on-0ver-the-head and you are dressed! The dresses, or huipiles, are made as (more or less) one size fits (almost) all! Patterns are rectangles, triangles and squares sewn together often with an intricate crochet stitch that can be as beautiful as the cloth.

Indigenous Fashion Inspires Mexican Runways Now, an Associated Press story picked up by the New York Times tells how Mexico City contempo-Mex designers like Lydia Lavin are incorporating indigenous clothing design elements into high-end fashion. (Click on her name to see the runway models.] Price tags are upwards of $1,000USD. (One can buy a lovely Oaxaca huipil for under $100USD. The weaver may get 40-70%.) Of course the look is entirely different! In Lydia Lavin’s work, you will recognize bits and pieces of indigenous textile in the couture. [Our friend Ana Paula Fuentes, director of the Museo Textil de Oaxaca, adds to the story's commentary.]

[Left: Women at the Guelaguetza wear indigenous dress, all handwoven, from the Alta Mixteca, in Oaxaca.]

Is this an issue of Fair Trade or Fair Game?

Ultimately, it is the consumer who must decide if the indigenous artisan is being fairly compensated for her/his work or role in clothing production. We all make choices. I constantly struggle with the question about what is authentic, since adaptation is part of evolution and creativity. Yet, our choices may be clearer when offered a high-fashion knock-off that incorporates synthetic fabric, is made on a commercial rather than back-strap loom, and perhaps is made in China!

[Left: Santa Fe, NM textile designer Sheri Brautigam describes huipil designs on display at Los Baules, the shop owned by Remigio Mestas on Macedonio Alcala in the Los Danzantes restaurant patio.]