New Artist: Weaving a life on a back-strap loom

One of the new artists at this year's Fair will be Ma. Trinidad González García, who tells us that the back strap loom was part of her life long before she was born.

Her mother and grandmother dedicated their lives to weaving to support the family. For this reason, her mother taught Trinidad and her three sisters the art of weaving from a very early age. When she was 10 years old, Trinidad began weaving ayates, rebozos and huipiles.

 

Thanks to this craft, Trinity and her sisters and brothers were able to study and complete a university education. Trinidad graduated as a veterinarian. However, unlike her sisters and brothers, she was the only one who decided to return to her roots.

For some years, she dedicated herself to her profession, but she never abandoned the threads and the loom, sometimes for additional income and sometimes just for the pleasure of creating. Sitting down to weave always made her feel more complete, more creative and more connected to the community.

Little by little, she began to notice that the loom made her feel more alive. She gave up her career and went back to weaving full time.

In 2013, with the support of her family, they opened their first Domitzu Handicrafts store, a family business dedicated to making handicrafts on the back strap loom. With a reputation for quality, the business grew and eventually added another store. Now, not just a family business, they are a social enterprise in which the community participates.

The loom has become one of Trinidad's most important treasures because it has brought some of the most satisfying experiences of her life. Not only has weaving given her the opportunity to win state and national awards, present lectures and give courses, it has also given her new dignity as an artisan and will leave an incredible legacy for her daughter.

The "Domitzu Handicrafts" team currently has 10 women: 7 artisans, 2 seamstresses and 1 designer, some weave full-time and others give free classes to community members. They are one of the few families that preserve the technique of "tres alzaderas" or "doble vista", techniques that, due to their complexity, are in danger of extinction.

The revitalization of the use of the back strap loom has allowed them to understand their identity as part of the people of Hñahñu, which, at the same time, has led them to acquire the commitment to preserve the trade.

The group has won many awards, among them:

• Third place in the National Grand Prize of Popular Art in 2015 in Mexico City,
• First Place in the Contest of Vegetable Fibers in 2015 in Campeche, Campeche,
• Third place in the National Grand Prize of Popular Art in 2018, Mexico City.

Winning awards has become a family tradition. Trinidad's mother, Martina Garcia, has won the Presidential Grand Masters Award for Popular Art and her daughter, Frida Diaz, has won First Place in Mexico's Young Creators of Popular Art Contest.

Fair Trade Art: Spread Happiness

National Geographic’s Novica has a startling mantra: spread happiness.

With a business model of connecting artisans to a global marketplace of socially conscious customers, Novica’s banner states: Over $90.2 million sent to artisans so far! 

They focus on both ...

• happy artisans: Fair prices, no binding contracts, and the freedom to make a success of their craft by building a sustainable business. 
• happy customers: Unique handmade products, great value, and the joy of helping to nurture and elevate the craft of global artisans.

From: Museo Textil de Oaxaca

After traveling for a few days with Linda Hanna, Oaxaca coordinator for Feria Maestros del Arte, we started talking about the idea of paying a fair price for the pieces of folk art we found along the way … and, of course, the whole idea of “haggling.” 

It seemed to be a good subject to write about and I was delighted to find that Novica already has ten principles in place. On their webpage linked below, they go into the details of how they implement each principle. 

What is Fair Trade? 

In simple terms, it's the belief that everyone should be fairly compensated for the work they do.

The fair trade movement has 10 guiding principles...

• PRINCIPLE 1: Create opportunities for economically disadvantaged producers.
• PRINCIPLE 2: Be transparent and accountable.
• PRINCIPLE 3: Conduct fair trade practices.
• PRINCIPLE 4: Pay a fair price.
• PRINCIPLE 5: Guard against child labor and forced labor.
• PRINCIPLE 6: Promote gender equality and non discrimination.
• PRINCIPLE 7: Ensure good working conditions.  
• PRINCIPLE 8: Provide capacity building. 
• PRINCIPLE 9: Promote fair trade. 
• PRINCIPLE 10: Respect for the environment.

Article by Joyce Wycoff, volunteer with Feria Maestros del Arte

What Is Mexican Folk Art? DRAFT

Is there a line where Mexican folk art begins and ends?

After a few days of traveling with Linda Hanna, the Oaxaca coordinator for the Feria Maestros del Arte, it would seem that there might be a distinction between "folk art" and "not folk art. 

Yesterday we met Brian Gregorio Corres in his workshop. Brian is a clay artist who was a winner of a Friends of Oaxacan Art (FOFA) exhibition in 2013. He won a study scholarship that gave him new insights. In 2015 his work was rejected as “not folk art.” 

Brian Gregorio Corres entry for 2015

I’ve heard similar stories which prompted the question, 

What is Mexican folk art? 

Marianne Carlson, founder of Feria Maestros del Arte provides a starting point:

Folk art is fixed in traditions that come from communities and cultures with shared values and traditions that express and foster cultural identity.

Folk art encompasses a range of utilitarian and decorative media, including cloth, wood, paper, clay, metal and more.

Folk artists are persons skilled in a form of handmade distinctive creations that can be either utilitarian or decorative. They embody the traditions of their culture and artistic techniques and are either taught by family or apprentice with artists. 

Wikipedia offers a general definition: Mexican handcrafts and folk art is a complex collection of items made with various materials and intended for utilitarian, decorative, or other purposes. Some of the items produced by hand in this country include ceramics, wall hangings, vases, furniture, textiles and much more. Interesting, however not very useful for determining the criteria for inclusion in the category of Mexican folk art.

After saying, "First, no one can agree on what it means,” one site goes on to define it as: "Folk art" is mostly utilitarian or decorative art created by an unaffluent social class of peasants, artisans and tradespeople who live in rural areas of civilized but not highly industrialized societies.

The Mexican Folk Art Guide offers this definition: Folk Art is the name given to the artistic creations made by peasants, indigenous people or craftsmen with no formal artistic training. A folk art item is handmade and has a functional purpose opposing an art object that is made for aesthetic purposes only. Most of the folk art creations are made by anonymous people but they can be identified with a region or ethnic group culture.

As Linda and I discussed this question, we came up with possible elements of a useable … and useful … definition: 

• style … useful or decorative, figurative rather than non-objective (abstract) 
• materials … local, natural 
• creator … primarily self-taught, often from a long lineage of artisans and local traditions 
• process … hand-made, small quantities

Another element that comes to mind is … for lack of a better term … connection. Connection to spirit, to the elements (land, water, sky, plants and animals) of the local areas, as well as to traditions of culture and religion.

So here’s the challenge: How would you define Mexican Folk Art? We will update this post with other suggestions.

Gayla Pierce offers thoughts (see comments) and a quote from Japanese philosopher Sōetsu Yanagi:

“It is my belief that while the high level of culture of any country can be found in its fine arts, it is also vital that we should be able to examine and enjoy the proofs of the culture of the great mass of the people, which we call folk art. The former are made by a few for the few, but the latter, made by the many for many, are a truer test. The quality of the life of the people of that country as a whole can best be judged by the folkcrafts.”
– The Unknown Craftsman – A Japanese Insight into Beauty, Sōetsu Yanagi, Kodansha International, New York, 1989

FYI ... here is the FOFA newsletter highlighting the young folk artist winners exhibition. It is a remarkable show if you get a chance to see it.

The new folk art exhibition Mostrando la Fuerza de Mi Pueblo (Showing the Strength of My People) opened on December 8 at the Museo Estatal de Arte Popular Oaxaca (MEAPO) in San Bartolo Coyotepec, Oaxaca. FOFA President Arden Rothstein, and Treasurer Deborah Huntington represented the organization at the opening celebration. The exhibition's sixty-six art pieces are the winners from FOFA-MEAPO's August 2018 competition. 

I was lucky enough to meet the young palm jewelry artist, Mónica Díaz Martinez. She will be showing her fabulous work at Feria Maestros del Arte 2019 ... November 8-10.