~~LA CATRINA FRIDA~~THE CATRINA FRIDA~~

Here we have Frida the Eternal, creating her mortal self. A thought provoking image...the Huichol people believe that as they create their artworks they are creating the world that is represented in the image...or should that be 're-presented'?
                                                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Aqui tenemos La Frida Eterna, creando si misma mortal. Un pensamiento curioso...la gente Huichol creen que mientras estan creando sus obras de artes, estan creando el mundo que esta representado en el imagen...ó deber ser 're-presentado'?

~Jaguar Mask with Milagros~~Mascara Jaguar con Milagros~

"Grrrrr....get in here & find out what you're missing!"says the Jaguar. Hand-carved from avocado wood, covered with magical milagros (miracles), a perfect guardian for your folk art collection.
                                                                          ~~~

So What’s With The Skeletons!?!
   We hear this question all the time. In the rest of North America, bones conjure up fear, are used to scare children, and no good christian-minded soul wants to be reminded of death. Then, here they come to Mexico and find skeleton figures in all the art and artesania shops. There’s even a children’s cartoon named Huesita, or Little Bone. Why?  The answer is complicated, as different cultures tend to be, and Mexico’s culture is complicated indeed. The indigenous people of Mexico were conquered by the Spanish some 500 years ago, but they were not killed off or driven onto reservations. For the most part they were put to work. Over the centuries, the cultures of conqueror and conquered have melded in fascinating ways.   One of these ways is the celebration of Dia de Los Muertos, a two day festival honoring our ancestors. Every year our departed come to visit, to feast and party with the living. The next day all go to the cemetary, where the party continues into the night. Then the living go home, and the dead await the next year. Though the Catholic church was able to move the date of this celebration to coincide with All Saints Day and All Souls Day, this is where Christian influence mostly stops.   It’s good to keep in mind that most of the cultures of Meso America were interrelated, the same ball courts can be found in ruins near Phoenix as are found on the Yucatan peninsula. They also shared their religions. An integral part of that religion was the depiction of many gods as skeletons. Skeletons were considered good luck and were a symbol of fertility, the dicotomy of life. The god Quetzalcoatl was said to have stolen bones from the the god of the underworld to create the different races of mankind. It was believed that the god Mictlantecuhtli and his wife presided over the world of the dead. They are always portrayed as skeletons. This helps to explain the use of skeletons in the Dia de los Muertos celebration, and why we see them so often in ordinary life. In Mexico, bones are simply not something to be afraid of.

Tom Swanson & Marianne Menditto can be reached at  

http://www.ColibriDesignVallarta.com

~EXTERIOR VIEW~~VISTA EXTERIOR~

                     OUTSIDE OF THE "THEATRE" SHOWING THE DOOR-STOP HOLDER

~DETAIL SHOT~~FOTO del DETAILLE~

                                   
                                         A CLOSE-UP OF THEIR PLAYBILL.

~UN PAR de SINVERGUENZAS~~A PAIR WITH NO SHAME~

The title doesn't translate TOO badly! Literally translated "without shame". I love Spanish...so expressive. So many definitions/inferences within just a single word. "¡SINVERGUENZA!" An exclamation to express shock or out-rage. It is to say that some one is shameless or brazen.

I was looking through old Mexican movie posters online to explore the relationship between angels and devils in Mexican culture when I can across this title, "Un Par de Sinverguenzas". The storyline of the movie does not deal with devil and/or angels, but the title struck me as perfect. The angel supposedly does nothing to be ashamed of...the devil supposedly feels no shame for his deeds...how perfectly ironic! How fitting...as my premise was to explore their similarities.

I just finished this story box yesterday. 'Asemblage' is my favorite medium. I find many intriguing tidbits on my travels, file them away until I find the proper container. Then, the story wends it's way like a meadering river. I usually craft or modify the accessories to suit size and esoteric requirements. Putting a story box together is like creating a 3D puzzle. I like a complex tale that involves the viewer's imagination, that has many facets to the imagery.

Since moving to Mexico 12 years ago, I'm finding more mystery and inspiration than ever.

~¡JAGUARES MAGICOS!~~MAGICAL JAGUARS!~

These beautiful jaguar masks were made by one of our favorite families of Alebrige crafters. La familia Joaquin Vasquez Hernandez from San Martin Tilcajete, Oaxaca.

Jaguars have been revered in Mesoamerica since time immemorial. They are truely amazing creatures. These largest of cats in the western hemisphere are only in the Americas, descendants of the Asian leopards who crossed the Bering Land Bridge and evolved to their new environs. Their prowess and strength earned them a Godly status with the early human inhabitants of the New World. They have yet to relinquish their thrones.

~LA MANO de MUJER~~THE WOMAN'S HAND~

               
                                                                   
       
What a woman puts her hand to...things made by or used by women is the theme. The little street vendor is camped outside the public market next to the market shrine, selling her wares, sheltered under it's portico.

I call these story boxes. This is my 3rd one. The first 2 are sold. These first 3 are housed in handmade mason's boxes. The masons and tilesetters of Mexico use these to work small batches of plaster or tile mortar. I put feet on them and used a picture framing wire system on the back so they can be displayed either sitting or hanging. You can see the worn wood of the front edge, from the repeated washing of the tool at day's end. After the boxes are too worn to use, they'll just make a new one. In Mexico, most buildings are of masonry, so there is alot of form-wood handy. I love the saw-horses (burros) and other useful things they just whip up! In my role of tile designer for our custom homes in Puerto Peñasco, I had easy access to these boxes and since my husband enjoys his Cerveza Victoria, I have access to lots of yellow bottle-caps as well!  ¡¡¡Ahhh...Victoria!!!


     
CLICK on the image to get a closer look. (This pic will enlarge because of the horizontal format)

                     

¡VIVA CATRINAS!~~HURRAH CATRINAS!

               ¡Zapata y Novia son vendidos!         ¡Danzante vendida!