W I D E W O R L D O F C R A F T
V
Craft as Culture
s t o r y b y
J u d y A rg in tea n u
tin w o rk , co m es fro m is an
e x c e p tio n .) G iv e n th is h isto ry ,
a so u rce o f lo cal p rid e, it’s little
su rp rise th at artists o fte n sp eak
o f
laherencia -
h eritage.
T o p re se rv e th at h erita g e ,
m a n y artists h a ve b an d ed
to g e th e r in c o o p e ra tiv e s to
h elp sta y aflo at eco n o m ically.
T h e io -yea r-o ld C asa de las
A rte sa n ia s de O a x a c a started
w ith fo u r p artn e rs w h o sold
fro m a b o o th in th e
z
6
calo
, o r
cen tral sq u are, w h e re th e g o v -
ern m en t ch arge d th em rent.
T o d a y , 65 artists w o r k in g in a
w id e ran ge o f m ed ia co m p rise
th e co -op . T h e y sh are all co sts
and re v e n u e - regard less o f w h o
so ld w h a t - on a p rim e p ie ce o f
real estate n ear th e h ig h -tra ffic,
h igh -to u rist
andador
(p e d estrian
stre e t) o f M a c e d o n io A lc a la .
“ It’s b een really g o o d fo r m e
and m y fa m ily , sin ce w e had n o
sp ace to sell ou r w o r k ,” says
S erafin M a rtin e z G o n z a le z , w h o
com es from th e n ea rb y w e a v in g
villa g e o f T e o titla n del V a lle .
C asa de las A rtesan ias d ire cto r
F ra n c isc o ja im e L 6 p e z G arcia
and A n se lm o C erq u e d a G arcia,
w h o runs th e re c e n tly o p en ed
P la za de A rtesan ias co -o p , b o th
stress that th e organ izatio n s
h a ve a social as w e ll as an e c o -
n o m ic d im en sion: an eth o s o f
co m m u n ity and service.
T h e C e n tro de A r te T e x til
Z a p o te c o B ii D au ii, an oth er c o -
o p , sp ran g u p in T e o titla n in th e
p ast several y e a rs
(b ii daiiii
m eans “ d ivin e b re ath ” in th e
local lan gu age). Its m em bers are
p articu larly in ten t o n p rese rv in g
th e trad itio n o f all-natural d y es,
w h ic h had b een su p p lan ted in
re c e n t d ecad es b y fa ste r, ch e a p -
e r artificial o n es. T h e trad itio n al
d y e s are d e riv e d m o stly fro m
p lan t so u rce s, as w e ll as c o c h i-
n eal, an in se ct th at liv e s o n cacti
and y ie ld s a rich , d eep m agen ta-
red . T h e co -o p has in itia te d its
o w n farm in g p ro je c t, u sin g
ea rth -frie n d ly p ra ctice s and
solar e n e rg y . I t’s also th e first
villa g e co -o p to in clu d e b oth
m en and w o m e n , and y o u n g e r
and o ld e r artists, says d ire cto r
apr/may
11 american craft 109
