Tickets to sit close to Oaxaca’s Guelaguetza Auditorium stage are costly, about $100 USD per person. Up high in the upper galleries, the seats are free and people start lining up hours in advance of the opening to be able to capture one.
The controversy lies in the accessibility to this annual folkloric performance in an auditorium that can hold 11,000 people. So, the government provides live video streaming on the Internet and broadcasts the performances on a big screen in the Zocalo.
However, this year the Zocalo is an encampment, occupied by another demonstration of teachers who continue to protest poor pay and lack of support for adequate school supplies. Since 2006, it has become much more than that.
In the political tradition of Mexico, this legal demonstration highlights the ongoing conflict between the workers and the bourgeoisie, those in power and those who have no voice, those who have access and those who don’t.
Lila Downs sings about this. Diego Rivera painted it. Jose Guadalupe Posada sketched the iconic images of this Day of the Dead Calavera Catrina mocking the middle class who turned its back on the impoverished.
This is my third year to attend the Guelaguetza. Fortunately, my ticket was a gift this year. Each time, I think about what a privilege it is to be here.
The other controversy is about what Guelaguetza really means. Guelaguetza is not a folkloric performance as most visitors believe, but a way of life for indigenous people. Full baskets of gifts for visitors is a symbol for the hope of there being enough — more than enough, of plenty — for all.
Guelaguetza is a complex word meaning mutual support, giving and receiving, a way to keep communities intact, a way to honor ritual and tradition. You can learn more about this in the Teotitlan del Valle community museum. It is why Zapotecs here have survived and thrived for 8,000 years.
It is beautiful to see this honored on the stage of the auditorium, replete with Oaxaca’s most beautiful women, handwoven textiles, music, and ritual dance.
We watch mating and marriage rituals recreated complete with live guajolotes, and the teasing between young men and women from Pinotepa Don Luis. The women’s purple and red skirts are back strap loom woven with cochineal and purpua dyed cotton.
We see how communities like Juxtlahuaca in the Mixteca-Baja depend on raising, killing and selling cattle as they dance with spurs clicking and rattling.
That is why this performance never tires. It is important to know, however, that this is a re-enactment of daily life. To get to know the real Oaxaca, visit her villages and meet her people. Don’t sit in an auditorium with a camera and binoculars, and believe this is a complete experience!
The evening performances end in a dazzling fireworks display! It can be seen for miles around and went on for what seemed a good ten or fifteen minutes. This is only one of many images I caught. Yes, it’s a great time to be in Oaxaca!
The performances happen on the last two Mondays of July each year. There are two performances remaining, one at 10 a.m. and the other at 5 p.m. on Monday, July 28. Go, if you can. It’s a magnificent experience.
Day 2: Portrait Photography in the Markets
First stop is the small village of San Juan Guelavia for the last day of the Feria del Carrizo. This pueblo, just across the highway from Teotitlan del Valle, is famous for its finely woven baskets made from strips of bamboo. We spent about an hour here before going on to the bigger regional Tlacolula Sunday tianguis.
San Juan Guelavia is a friendly town. If you ask, Podria tomarle su foto? Would you agree to have me take your picture? most people will respond positively. Of course, we always ask first because otherwise how would one get consent to take a portrait with eye contact from the subject when he or she is no more than two feet away?
At the Tlacolula market, when we asked, the response was predominantly NO. Some people wanted a fifty peso propina (tip). Others asked us to buy something and then they would consent.
One group of men said they didn’t want to be taken advantage of, to have their photos used in a magazine, even when we explained that we were amateurs taking a workshop to learn photographic techniques.
What do you think about paying someone to take their photo?
I managed to get some people to agree based on engaging them in conversation, admiring their work, and just trying to figure out who might be receptive. It’s important not to take rejection personally!
After lunch at Comedor Mary, on the edge of the permanent market facing the side of the Tlacolula church, we decided to return to Teotitlan del Valle where we settled in to Drupa’s Cafe. They are so generous here. With excellent WiFi, hot chocolate, pannini sandwiches, coffee and chai latte, we met here with Matt for a learning session on lighting and reviewed each of our ten best photos from Day One, that included feedback for improvement.
These photos here represent my person eleven best of almost two hundred photos I took today. And, finally, below, a husband and wife of many years, separated by their hand-woven baskets, wait for customers in San Juan Guelavia.
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Posted in Cultural Commentary, Photography, Travel & Tourism, Workshops and Retreats
Tagged bamboo baskets, digital photography, market, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photography ethics, portraits, San Juan Guelavia, Tlacolula, weaving