News
Mexico By Hand and the Diego Rivera exhibit at SFMOMA!
buying artesania catrina clay crafts exhibit folk art Huancito Mexican museum rebozos Rivera SFMOMA
Huancito pots: Another story behind the art!
buying artesania Huancito pottery
We have a lot of incredible memories (both good and bad) of buying and selling the beautiful burnished clay pots of Huancito. I love their art and enjoy sharing it with folks in the U.S. Here's a good story about how we met a young artisan from one of the village's families online.
Pine Needle Baskets, part 2
baskets butterflies Michoacan monarch pine needle
No hay mal que por bien no venga."There's nothing bad through which good doesn't come". My original story about our pine needle baskets was written in March of 2019. This post includes some of that story-- plus an update. In the past 17 years I have bought and sold thousands of pieces of handmade artesania (crafts) from Mexico, including dozens of pine needle baskets. I’ve acquired the baskets various ways-- sometimes from the artisans themselves while I’m in Mexico and they happen to be selling in Morelia or Uruapan, and other times through my assistant who arranges a purchase for me...
Another Michoacán Great Master
Antonio Anita Mejia artesania authentic bateas folk art Michoacan Quiroga traditional
I am very sad to share the news that we recently lost another great Mexican folk artist--Antonio Anita Mejia of Michoacán. I have known Antonio since 2003 and Mexico By Hand has bought and sold dozens of his beautiful pieces over the years. As a matter of fact, I have many right now waiting to be shipped from Mexico to California. I first noticed Antonio in front of his colorfully painted bateas and trasteritos at the Dia de los Muertos market in Patzcuaro, and took this photo. He was sitting just outside of the official artisans booth area at the...
Returning to Zipiajo!
artesania authentic blouses clay crafts embroidery folk art handmade Michoacan textiles traditional
We met Elvia Silva Bartolo in 2004 while Doug and I were shooting our documentary. She’s in Zipiajo, a Purepecha village way off the beaten track where a few artisans make unpainted terracotta clay pots and gorgeous embroidered blouses.We didn’t know about the embroidery at the time, and until we were in Elvia’s workshop we had no idea that she had an incredible talent for sculpting clay animal figures. We bought a few small ones that day, and later purchased some that won prizes in Michoacán state fairs. She has a piece in the prestigious Museo del Arte Popular in...