WARP Oaxaca Walking Tour: Textiles and Folk Art

Last Sunday, a group of ten WARP conference participants gathered in the lobby of our hotel at 9:30 a.m. We set out for a day-long walking tour of textiles and folk art, concentrating on a few superb venues to see the best of the best.

Walking around Oaxaca on a Sunday morning.

I had set meetings up in advance with two of Oaxaca’s most distinguished shops where the finest textiles are curated and sold, Arte Amuzgo and Los Baules de Juana Cata.

Efigenia, with exquisite Amuzgo huipil, rare caracol purpura (purple snail) dye

I asked the owners if they would select five to ten of their most outstanding textiles, explain the dye and back-strap weaving process, and talk about the maker and the region of origin.

Rare silk + Egyptian cotton huipil, indigo + caracol purpura dyes, San Mateo del Mar

Both are doing an outstanding effort to rescue lost weaving traditions by encouraging villages to bring back an art form on the edge of extinction.

Baby alpaca translates to traditional Mitla weaving, theme of corn + cacao beans

Both have galleries in the historic center of Oaxaca where they offer a market for indigenous artisans to show and sell their work.

Amazing indigo, native coyuchi cotton and caracol purpura blusa, Amuzgos

They give attribution to the weavers, too, by including their names and villages on the hang tags of the clothing.

On the colonial walking street, Macedonio Alcala, Oaxaca

But, first I thought it was important to offer a backdrop to Oaxaca, by explaining a bit about her history and culture. I invited Janet, who was born and raised here, to tell us about her city.

Gold-leaf interior, Santo Domingo Church, Oaxaca

Our first stop was at the cathedral on the Zocalo, where the story of Colonial Oaxaca begins. We then walked up the Alcala, making a coffee stop, a shopping stop for hand-made paper earrings (on special request from Louise), and gathered in front of Santo Domingo Church.

Like a tapestry, silk and Egyptian cotton huipil

Here, we talked about the conversion of indigenous people, the construction of the city, the power of the Dominicans, and the wealth provided by cochineal.

The underside is as beautiful as the front!

With a stop, too, at Andares del Arte Popular before lunch with a welcome from manager Eric Chavez Santiago, by the time we landed at Los Danzantes, hunger had overtaken us. Lots of walking, but we didn’t even complete 10,000 steps!

Efren at Los Baules de Juana Cata explains dedication to preserving Oaxaca textiles

Organic blue corn tortillas, Los Danzantes, Oaxaca

The aperitif, fresh frozen mango mezcal and agua de tuna

Here, I will not bore you with our seven course tasting menu that I ordered in advance.  It included grilled watermelon salad. Coconut shrimp. Rib eye tacos. Wild mushroom lasagna. Let’s go straight to dessert.

Chocolate casacada with house made vanilla ice cream, raspberry drizzle

And, if that wasn’t enough, another taste of my other favorite at Los Danzantes:

Goat cheese flan with toasted, caramelized nuts, honey and chocolate sauce

Oh, and fresh fruit. The figs were out of this world.

I ordered this so we would all stay healthy.

Back into the world of textiles, I want to show you some other beauties that we had the privilege to see this day.

Cochineal dyed silk on Egyptian cotton, embroidered, Ayutla

Irene’s find at Arte Amuzgo

Lollie and Elaine holding down the dressing room fort

Gauze weave cotton by Francisca Palafox, San Mateo del Mar

Getting a closer look

Rare green and coyuchi cotton, native to Oaxaca, Amuzgo

Oaxaca is a vast treasure trove of textile wonderfulness. In the colder mountain regions, the cottons are triple-ply and thick for warmth. Along the coast, the weave is much lighter gauze to cover-up but to also deal with hot, humid weather. Some villages weave. Others work in embroidery.

Close up of Mitla wool rebozo, with traditional corn and cacao pattern

There is a reintroduction of silk weaving, and wool is a perfect wrap around material for rebozos (shawls) to protect from winter chill in the valleys.

Stacks of fine garments at Los Baules de Juana Cata

Early Sunday morning, a perfect time for a stroll in Downtown Oaxaca