Oaxaca Valley and Coast Textile Study Tour is set to start Sunday, January 14, 2018, in Oaxaca city and end Wednesday, January 24, 2018, in Puerto Escondido, on Oaxaca’s Pacific coast. In between, you will meet artisans in their homes and workshops, enjoy great cuisine, dip your hands in an indigo dye-bath, travel to remote villages you may not go to on your own. This is an eclectic study tour with a focus on textiles and Oaxaca’s vast weaving culture. It also includes visits to graphic arts studios in the city.
Sold Out! Contact me to add your name to the waiting list.
Study Tour Itinerary*
1) Sunday, Jan 14. – Arrive in Oaxaca City and check into our comfortable bed and breakfast inn.
2) Monday, Jan. 15 – After breakfast, we will introduce you to Oaxaca folk art and textile culture with a noted local expert. Then, we’ll explore more with afternoon visits to meet textile collectors and artisans, and graphic artists. We will gather for a welcome dinner at one of Oaxaca’s outstanding restaurants. (B, L, D)
Hand-carved gourd art from Pinotepa Don Luis
3) Tuesday, January 16 — Natural Dye and Weaving Textile Study Tour in the Oaxaca Valley, a full-day exploration into the small weaving and dye studios of some of Oaxaca’s greatest artisans. We will travel by luxury van and have lunch at a great village comedor (family restaurant). (B, L)
Wild marigold over-dyed with indigo will become green
5) Wednesday, January 17 – Half-Day Natural Dye Workshop: Indigo Blue. You will understand the principles and chemistry of working with indigo, then make a cotton shibori scarf. Afternoon on your own. Oaxaca is famed for fine silver and gold filigree jewelry. We fit in a silver jewelry expoventa, too. (B)
6) Thursday, January 18 — Fly from Oaxaca to Puerto Escondido very early in the morning, settle in and relax at our hotel on the Pacific Coast beach. Includes airfare from Oaxaca City to Puerto Escondido. (B)
Tending the dye bath in Teotitlan del Valle
On Oaxaca’s coast, we will be joined by a Cultural Anthropologist who has been working with local weaving villages for the past six years.
7) Friday, January 19 to Sunday, January 21 – – Leave after an early breakfast. Follow the textile trail high into the mountains to visit the famed weavers of San Pedro Amuzgos and San Juan Colorado, where they use back strap looms and natural dyes. We’ll stop at coops, visit markets, and have a few surprises along the way. On Friday, we’ll visit remote weaving villages of Tututepec and Huazolitlan. Overnight on the Costa Chica. (B, L)
8) On Saturday, January 20, we will go to Converse workshop where they hand-paint tennis shoes in fantastic floral and fauna, then to San Juan Colorado, then to visit Odilon Morales in Amuzgos, have lunch there, and return to Pinotepa. Overnight on the Costa Chica. (B, L)
Intricate figures woven into Pinotepa Don Luis textile
Odilon’s aunt, from San Pedro Amusgo, embroiders cloth together for huipil
9) Sunday, January 21 – We’ll return to Puerto Escondido leaving Pinotepa Nacional early in the morning to arrive in time to attend Dreamweavers Expoventa, a highlight of our textile study tour, to be held at our hotel. This is a textile extravaganza with the Tixinda Cooperative from Pinotepa Don Luis! They bring their finest garments dyed with murex (purple snail), woven with coyuchi (natural wild Oaxaca brown cotton), and posahuanco skirts You will meet the weavers, see demonstrations, and be amazed by what they make. Plus, the artful hand-painted Converse tennis shoes will be here, too. (B)
10) Monday, January 22 – We’ll take a three-hour early morning or late afternoon birding/ecology tour on the Manialtepec lagoon — beautiful and fascinating — where you will see a rare bio- luminescence…one of only two lagoons in the world to have this phenomena. And, perhaps a surprise visit from Chatino embroiderers (we are working on this). (B)
Chatino blouse detail, cross-stitch. Photo from Barbara Cleaver.
11) Tuesday, January 23 — This is a day on your own to take a day trip to the sea turtle sanctuary in Mazunte/San Agustinillo, or to explore the town of Puerto Escondido, and begin packing for the trip home. Grand finale dinner to say our goodbyes. (B, D)
Fine example of Chatino bag from Barbara Cleaver
12) Wednesday, January 24 – Transfer to Puerto Escondido or Huatulco airport and your connecting flights home. Please schedule your departure after 12:00 p.m. (noon). (B)
Sunset on the Pacific coast of Oaxaca in winter
Our resource experts are Sheri Brautigam, author of Textile Fiestas of Mexico, and Barbara Cleaver, collector and owner, Hotel Santa Fe, Puerto Escondido. Sheri will travel with us on the coast to offer her textile expertise. You can read more about Dreamweavers Expoventa in Sheri’s book.
*Note: Itinerary is subject to change. You may want to arrive early in Oaxaca city to acclimate to the 6,000 foot altitude. You may also want to stay later at the beach or travel elsewhere in Mexico when the study tour ends. After you register, we will provide you with hotel contact information if you want to make these arrangements directly.
Odilon Morales promotes his people through Arte de Amuzgo cooperative
Take this study tour to learn about:
- the culture, history and identity of cloth
- carding and spinning wool, and weaving with natural dyes
- clothing design and construction, fashion adaptations
- symbols and meaning of textile designs
- choice of colors and fibers that reflect each woman’s aesthetic while keeping with a particular village traje or costume
- graphics arts to express Mexico’s social, political culture
I have invited textile collector Sheri Brautigam to join me at the Oaxaca coast to give you a special, in-depth experience. Sheri writes the blog Living Textiles of Mexico and is recognized for her particular knowledge of Oaxaca textiles. She is author of the Thrums Textile Fiestas of Mexico: A Traveler’s Guide to Celebrations, Markets, and Smart Shopping. (I’ve contributed two chapters with photos, one for Tenancingo de Degollado and the other for Teotitlan del Valle!)
What Is Included
- 10 nights lodging at top-rated accommodations
- 10 breakfasts
- 5 lunches
- 2 dinners
- luxury van transportation for day trips as outlined in itinerary
- complete guide services
- airfare from Oaxaca to Puerto Escondido
- transfer from Puerto Escondido to Huatulco airport
Example of very fine Amusgo back strap loom weaving
The workshop does NOT include airfare, taxes, tips, travel insurance, liquor or alcoholic beverages, some meals, and local transportation as specified in the itinerary. We reserve the right to substitute instructors and alter the program as needed.
Cost to Participate
- $2,695 double room with private bath (sleeps 2)
- Add $400 for a single supplement (private room and bath, sleeps 1)
Who Should Attend
- Textile and fashion designers
- Weavers, embroiderers and collectors
- Home goods wholesalers/retailers who want a direct source
- Photographers and artists who want inspiration
- Anyone who loves cloth, culture and collaboration
Reservations and Cancellations. A 40% deposit is required to guarantee your spot. The balance is due in two equal payments. The first 30% payment is due on or before October 15, 2017. The second 30% payment is due on or before December 15, 2017. We accept payment with PayPal only. We will send you an itemized invoice when you tell us you are ready to register. After December 15, 2017, refunds are not possible. You may send a substitute in your place. If you cancel on or before December 15, 2016, we will refund 50% of your deposit.
Templo Santo Domingo at sunset, Oaxaca, Mexico
The Terrain and Walking: Oaxaca is a colonial town on a 6,000 foot high desert plateau surrounded by 12,000 foot mountains. Streets and sidewalks are cobblestones, some narrow and some with high curbs.
The stones can be a bit slippery, especially when walking across driveways that slant across the sidewalk to the street. We will do a lot of walking. Being here is a walker’s delight but we do tread with caution.
If you have mobility issues or health impediments, please let me know. I would encourage you to consider that this may not be the study tour for you. When you tell me you are ready to register, I will send you a health questionnaire to complete first.
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A Journey of Cloth: Amuzgo Weaving on Oaxaca’s Costa Chica
San Pedro Amuzgos is an Amuzgos village nestled in a mountain valley seven hours by winding road from the capital city of Oaxaca. It is closest to Tlaxiaco, but not really. You can get there following MEX 125 by private car or on a regional bus from Oaxaca (or you can come with us).
The road is a ribbon through mountain passes. Here, women have woven on back strap looms for centuries, long before Mexico’s conquest by the Spanish.
Birds and flower in brilliant colors are incorporated into the supplementary weft
Their themes are birds, flowers, vines, trees, the stories of creation, fertility, birth, marriage and rebirth after death. Life here is a continuum. Cloth is a covering but also a journey. Women will be buried in their wedding huipiles. Many of the designs span the Oaxaca-Guerrero border where Amuzgos live.
Odilon Merino Morales’ aunt wears her wedding huipil for us
At the northern border of Oaxaca and Guerrero, San Pedro Amuzgos is not easy to get to. We take the coastal route from Puerto Escondido, diverting northeast from Pinotepa Nacional through hills dotted with banana palms and dusty arteries. In bigger towns along the way, regional schools and rural health clinics offer local services just steps from the main paved highway. We are a good three hours from Puerto Escondido as the ribbon curls. The road narrows as we travel further. You don’t get anywhere fast here.
Odilon’s two aunts consult on weaving and embroidery work
Huipil is three lengths of loomed cotton, joined with a randa/needlework
Our destination is the cooperative Arte Amuzgos founded by Odilon Merino Morales. He is an innovative organizer and promoter of traditional weavers who work in the highest quality materials, including natural dyes and native cotton.
We are returning in 2019. Want to go? Email us.
An all indigo huipil embellished with caracol purpura
It is not unusual to find blusas (blouses) and huipiles (dresses) woven with native green, coyuche and cream cotton. Cotton dyed with caracol purpura purple, cochineal red, indigo, nanche (a fruit), pericone (wild marigold) and nuez (pecan shells) are staples of the palette here.
Odilon has attended the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market for many years. With proceeds from sales there, he reinvested in his community by building a cultural center in San Pedro Amuzgos. It includes three guest rooms and a bath, exhibition and dining space. There are plans for more. He receives visitors for demonstrations, exhibitions and meals.
An array of hand-woven huipiles created on the back strap loom
I know Odilon from Oaxaca city, where his gallery Arte Amuzgos holds beautiful textiles woven by women in the cooperative. They include his mother, sisters, aunts, cousins and nieces. The men in the family are farmers who also raise the local cotton, prized for its rarity and natural beauty. I’ve always wanted to make a pilgrimage to his village and made sure to include it on our Oaxaca Costa Chica Natural Dye Textile Study Tour.
Flowers and animal life adorn this huipil. This is not embroidered!
During our visit, Odilon tells us that years ago before the cooperative was formed, traders came to town to source the most beautiful garments for sale in the city. They bargained hard, offered women a pittance for their labor. An intricate huipil can take six to twelve months to weave. That does not include the time to grow, beat and dye the cotton.
Odilon talks about his passion, preservation of his weaving culture
If the trader bought a garment for 1,000 pesos, they would sell it for 2,000 pesos, then the Oaxaca retailer would mark it up to 6,000 pesos. Fair trade was not a concept then and there was no opportunity for villagers to directly reach consumers. Language was a barrier, too. The grandmothers spoke Amuzgo. Business was conducted in Spanish. They made do with what was offered them.
Our visit includes a natural dye demonstration with indigo and nanche
No more for the women and men of Arte Amuzgos.
An array of natural dyes used to weave some huipiles
Direct markets, from maker to consumer, are difficult to develop for most Oaxaca artisans. They rely on people to represent them and the cost is dear. As a result, the artisanry is either dying out or the quality of materials deteriorates as people look to cutting costs.
Thankfully, Odilon Merino Morales and his wife Laura, have created a market for their people who receive a fair and living wage for their work.
Lengths of cloth woven on the back strap loom, joined with intricate needlework
Panorama of Arte Amuzgos Cultural Center
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Posted in Clothing Design, Cultural Commentary, Textiles, Tapestries & Weaving, Workshops and Retreats
Tagged Costa Chica, Mexico, Mixtecs, natural dyes, Oaxaca, San Pedro Amuzgos, study tour, weaving