Omar Chavez Santiago went back to Mexico on Saturday but he left these five beautiful hand-woven tapestry rugs (tapetes) behind for me to sell for him and his family.
Omar’s family from Galeria Fe y Lola, use 100% churro sheep wool that is hand-spun on the drop spindle (malacate) in the Mixtec region of Oaxaca, high in the Sierra Madre del Sur about six hours from the city. Here, many women each raise a few sheep and twice year when the fleece is thick enough, they shear them and spin the wool by hand. They then collect the balls from among the group for the Chavez Santiago family to buy enough to work. Hand-spun wool, a rarity now, is more costly but is the strongest fiber for rug weaving.
Listen to this GistYarn podcast with Omar Chavez Santiago
#1, 4×6 ft, Mountains and Rain tapestry rug, $1,325
#1. Detail. Cochineal, indigo, natural sheep wool
That’s one reason why these wool rugs are collector and heirloom pieces.
The other reason is because the family uses ONLY 100% natural dyes. That means they prepare wool that they dye themselves using local plant materials and cochineal. This is a completely vertical process all done in the family home studio. They do not work in synthetic or chemical dyes at all — so everything from them is designed to be environmentally sustainable and healthy.
#2. A Thousand Stars, 4×6′, $1,325. All natural dyes.
#2 Detail. Cochineal, indigo, wild marigold, zapote, pomegranate
Many in Teotitlan del Valle know how to give the cochineal dye demonstration, squeezing lime juice or baking soda on a bit of ground bugs to show visitors how the color explodes and changes. This does not always mean that the makers use natural dyes in their tapestries. Only about a dozen families actually work with natural dyes because it it more expensive and time consuming.
SOLD. #3. Relampajo, 2-1/2×5′, $550. Indigo and wild marigold
After buying the handspun balls of wool, Omar, his mom Lola (nickname for Dolores) and his dad Fe (nickname for Federico), make the skeins of wool, wash and mordent the wool, then prepare the dye baths. They will grind dried cochineal bugs, grind and ferment the Oaxaca-grown indigo, prepare other plant materials like wild marigold (pericone), pomegranate, pecan shells and leaves, zapote negro, tree moss, huizache (acacia vine seed pods), palo de aguila (alderwood) and other dye sources. They have developed formulas to get over 40 shades of red, purple, orange and pink from the cochineal insect itself.
They are weavers, chemists, herbalists and artists.
SOLD. #4. Mariposas, 2-1/2 x 5′, Cochineal and wild marigold. $550.
This is #slowfiber and #smallbatches. It can take a week to dye enough yarn for one medium-sized rug. Another week to dress the loom and attach the warp threads. The weaver creates his or her design and executes it, standing at the two-pedal loom for several months working a six-hour day, six days a week. That’s about all the back can take!
When you visit a weaver, ask to see the dye pots. Weavers who work in small volume production have small inventories and are more likely to use natural dyes.
#5. Campo Rojo. 2-1/2×5′. $550. Cochineal, marigold, natural sheep wool.
In the fiber world we ask #whomademyclothes. The #fashionrevolution brings our attention to asking if what we buy is #fastfashion and disposable or made to last with excellent quality. This is not just about clothes. It is about supporting makers who are using ethical practices, paying fair wages and selling at fair value for time and materials.
It can take 90 days to weave a rug made in this way. If it costs $500 USD, please do the math. That’s a little more that $5 USD per hour.
One of the most gratifying things for me living in Mexico is the opportunity to buy direct from the maker. I know my purchase is meaningful and valued. This is also an important reason that I organize textile study tours — to bring visitors directly to the women and men who make the clothes and home goods and jewelry, and all the beautiful artisan work that Mexico is famous for. Afterall, in the end, it’s all about the relationship, not the thing!
I hope you will consider purchasing one of these beautiful rugs from Galeria Fe y Lola. Funds go directly to the family. Then, you will know the answer to #whomademyrug
How to Buy: Send me an email with your name, the item you want to buy, and your mailing address. I will respond with availability, send you a PayPal invoice (or you can mail me a check) that includes the cost of the rug and mailing. Fixed price shipping is $35 per small piece and $60 per large piece anywhere in lower 48 states. Inquire about mailing prices to Canada.
Diagramming the Altar of the Dead: Dia de los Muertos
Beginning in pre-Columbian times in the Zapotec culture, the dead are remembered through ofrendas (offerings). Each year the souls of the dead return to earth to partake with the living the foods they enjoyed when they were alive. The ofrenda rests on an altar dedicated to the dead relatives who are only able to return if their path is lit and they can find their way through the underworld. The ofrenda and altar is constructed around the elements of underworld, earth and sky. Here is the interpretation, as told by Eric Chavez Santiago.
Level One — Sky: represents religion and the sacred.
Level Two — Earth: this is the main part of the altar since it contains most of the characteristics elements including photos of the people remembered, food, fruits and beverages. This area is divided into four equal parts representing the four elements of the earth and the four seasons of the year. Summer is represented by the image of the person remembered, the salt cross, fruits, bread and food, sugar skulls, flowers, and chocolate. A glass of water or mezcal represents spring. Fall is represented with candles, fire, which is necessary to mark the path of light to guide the dead from the underworld to earth.
Level Three — Underworld: This the the place where the dead and the souls of purgatory rest. It is the road towards the world of the living where the dead need a guide represented by the candles marking the four cardinal points. This is represented with copal incense to purify the atmosphere, a vase of white flowers to symbolize purity and tenderness, and yellow flowers to symbolize richness, and a small carpet as an offering for rest.
The ofrenda that Eric and Janet Chavez Santiago constructed at the University of Notre Dame’s Snite Museum of Art was in honor of their grandfather, Jose Chavez Ruiz, a master weaver who died at the age of 85 in 2006. He took the family design of the caracol (snail) to the next level, achieving a special technique to create a difficult to execute curved design, replicating those carved in the Zapotec temples of 700 AD. The Chavez Santiago family continues to create tapestries in the traditions of their forefathers.
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Posted in Cultural Commentary, Oaxaca Mexico art and culture, Teotitlan del Valle
Tagged day of the dead, dia de los muertos, Eric Chavez Santiago, Janet Chavez Santiago, Mexican religious symbols, tapestry weaving, Teotitlan del Valle