The photography at the Post Office in Oaxaca is very interesting!

 

The massive post office just of the zocalo in Oaxaca is extremely interesting.  Grand photos of Oaxacan women, marble floors,

an old flatbed railroad cart, 

old fashion mail slots for the city, all of Mexico, the United States and Europe...  But what is really striking are these large photographs of Oaxacan ladies dressed in their regional attire.  

Not much is known of the photographer except for the name above and the address of the studio in Mexico City.   I would guess these photos were shot around 1930.

There is a dance celebration every July in Oaxaca called The Guelaguetza which represents the eight regions of Oaxaca: Valles Centrales, Sierra Norte, La Cañada, Papaloapam, La Mixteca, La Costa, Sierra Sur and Istmo de Tehuantepec.  The Guelaguetza features traditional costumed dancing and each costume, or traje, and dance usually has a local indigenous historical and cultural meaning.

This lady is representing the Valles Central.  Also known as the Chinas Oaxaqueñas, she is “a working woman", typically found in the city’s markets, of a deep Catholic faith, who honors the Virgin or a particular saint with floral offerings and their dance.

They are also known for their jewelry and their long braids.  They carry a cross that represents their religion. And a small charm holding a portrait which may be of a loved one or the image of a saint or the Virgin de la Soledad, a patron of Oaxaca.

In the Sierra Norte region, the huipils are commonly woven from wool and cotton using back-strap looms.  The costumes of this region are characterized by being more sober in color but very rich in texture, adapting to a cooler climate.

From the  Istmo region, the traditional dress of the Tehuanas was known nationwide to be the symbol of the most independent and proud indigenous women in all of Mexico with their opulent huipils and velvet skirts embroidered with local flowers.  Frida Kahlo adapted this style of dress from her mother who was from this region.  Their hair is a crown of braids, although what stands out most is the silk bun and the flowers.  There is the resplandor, a headdress unique to the women of the Tehuantepec Isthmus which consists of starched white lace and can be worn two different ways.  One is on the top of a woman’s head for festivals and the Guelaguetza and the other, at religious events, where it is positioned so that it frames the face.

After my group and I took in all the photographs, we wandered over to the zocalo and low and behold there were a group of ladies in their traditional dress representing the various regions!

Oaxaca has maintained its artistic identity.  The culture, folk art, contemporary art, murals, native dress, cuisine.  

A traditional Mexican proverb proclaims,

 "What you don't see, the heart can't feel."   How true in Oaxaca!

The Center for Arts in San Agustín Etla and Francisco Toledo

One of my favorite places to visit when in Oaxaca is the Center for the Arts in San Agustín Etla, after of course coming from having several delicious tamales in the market in Etla on a Wedneday, their market day.  

I always stop at "Tamales Maty".  That morning I bought Flor de Calabazas (squash blossoms), Pollo y Salsa Verde (chicken with green sauce) and Rajas (roasted poblanos).  Just delicious.  And she remembered me from my previous visit!  She always throws in one or two different tamales as an extra treat.

 

 

The Fabrica de Hilados y Tejidos La Soledad (La Soledad Yarns and Fabrics Factory) was founded in 1883 in the small community of San Agustín Etla. It was abandoned less than a century after its inception.

 

In 2000, Juchitan-born artist Francisco Toledo (17 July 1940 - 5 September 2019) spearheaded an initiative to turn the then-derelict building into an ecological arts center, which opened in 2006. 

Today, water features, gardens, and abandoned industrial machinery dot the complex.

The trees surrounding the complex are just magnificent .

The current exposition in the main building is the work of Francisco Toledo.  This main expansive space is just stunning.  The steel columns came from Chicago Steel & Iron.

Toledo works in every conceivable medium—oil, watercolor, ink, metal, he makes cloth puppets, lithographs, tapestries, ceramics, mosaics and much, much more.

He designed tapestries with the village craftsmen of Teotitlán del Valle.  These two weaving demonstrate his opposition to the introduction of genetically modified corn into Mexico, something that has been a huge issue in the Oaxaca valley.
 

His iron works are wonderful.

 

Toledo was heavily influenced by Zapotec myths and legends, and the wildlife and flora of a his rural upbringing. His work is filled with the many Zapotec deities, the bat god, the gods of rain and fire, and the sacred animals—rabbits, coyotes, jaguars, deer and turtles.

Toledo's devotion to social and cultural concerns did not stop here.  He participated in the establishment of an art library at the Instituto de Artes Gráficas de Oaxaca (IAGO), in the founding of the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca (MACO), the Patronato Pro-Defensa y Conservación del Patrimonio Cultural de Oaxaca, a library for the blind, a photographic center, and the Eduardo Mata Music Library. 

 

He fought against the building of a McDonald's in Oaxaca City, right in the zocalo.

He announced that he would take off all his clothes and stand naked in front of the  proposed site.  He would enlist the help of a few fellow artists and hand out free tamales to anyone who joined the protest, reminding them of their true native food.
Hundreds of people marched in the 2002 event, chanting “Tamales, yes! Hamburgers, no!” In the end,  Toledo did not find it necessary to take off his clothes.

 

And how fortunate my group and I were there for this latest exhibition, especially honoring the artist who was instrumental in restoring this outstanding complex.  What a beautiful setting!

Jacarandas are in full Bloom

The Jacaranda Trees are in full bloom right now in parts of Mexico.  They certainly were when I was in Oaxaca a week ago.  It bears masses of vibrant purple-blue flowers and is a popular street tree in warmer climates.  The Jacaranda was a gift from a Japanese immigrant, Tatsugoro Matsumoto, and is a symbol of international friendship.

Matsumoto was an imperial gardener from Tokyo who came to Mexico in 1896.  He first settled in Peru as an invitation of the government where he was commissioned to design several gardens for the country.  After a few years, the government of Japan asked him to come to Mexico.

The "Colonia Roma" was one of the most elegant neighborhoods in Mexico City at the time and he began designing and maintaining gardens for many of the residents.  After gaining an impeccable reputation, President Porfirio Diaz asked him to oversee the floral arrangements for the presidential palace and the expansive grounds surrounding the Chapultepec Castle. 

In 1920, President Alvaro Obregon commissioned Matsumoto to plant Jacaranda trees (originally from Brazil) in the main avenues of Mexico City.  And today, they have become a landmark to many cities and villages across Mexico.  

Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City.  Pretty spectacular!
 

Matsumoto fell so in love with Mexico City and its colonial architecture, he returned to Japan once his contract was over to collect his wife and bring her back to the city where they lived the rest of their lives.  He died in 1955 at the age of 95.

 

Saint Lorenzo, also known as Saint Lawrence

Sangre de Cristo, a small church built on top of an old cemetery in Oaxaca, was consecrated in 1689 and declared as its own parish in 1893.  The plot on which it was built was still being used as a cemetery in Oaxaca until the mid-seventeenth century.  Located along the pedestrian Alcala Street across from the Labastida Park, it features a plain facade with an ornate portal and two small bell towers. 

The interior with its whitewashed walls has minimal accent colors, a single nave with no side isles.

 

But what has always intrigued me was the saint holding a grate that stood in the niche on the south side of the church.   A few saints have always interested me:  Saint Martin de Porros, Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Pascal, Saint Roche (Roch) and of course, Saint Michael (San Miguel Archangel) but I had no knowledge of Saint Lorenzo, also known as Saint Lawrence.

A Spaniard by birth, Lorenzo was one of the seven deacons of Rome, that is, one of the seven trusted men of the Pope Sixtuus.  His job was of great responsibility, he was in charge of distributing aid to the poor and keeper of the library of sacred books.

In the year 257, Emperor Valerian published a decree of persecution in which he ordered that everyone who declared himself a Christian would be sentenced to death. On August 6, Pope Saint Sixtus was celebrating Holy Mass in a cemetery in Rome when he was arrested and murdered along with four of his deacons by the emperor's police. 

 

Saint Sixtus instructed Lorenzo to collect all the money and other goods that the Church had in Rome and distribute them among the poor. 

Overhearing this, the Roman authorities commanded that Lorenzo collect all the treasures of the Church, because the emperor needs money to pay for a war that is about to begin.

Lorenzo asked for three days to gather all the treasures of the Church, and in those days he invited all the poor, cripples, beggars, orphans, widows, elderly, mutilated, blind and lepers that he helped with his alms. 

The mayor arrived very happy thinking of filling himself with gold and silver and when he saw such a collection of misery and disease he was greatly disgusted, but Lorenzo said, "Why is he disgusted? These are the most appreciated treasures of the church of Christ!"

The mayor was enraged, ordering him to be killed.  He was tortured and eventually placed on a gridiron and roasted!  The mayor said, "Since he has so many desires to be a martyr, I will martyr him horribly."

After a while of burning on the grill, the martyr said to the judge: "I'm already roasted on one side. Now go back to the other side to be completely roasted." The executioner ordered him to be turned over and so he burned himself completely. When he felt that he was already completely roasted he exclaimed: "The meat is ready, you can eat." And with a tranquility that no one had imagined, he prayed for the conversion of Rome and the spread of the religion of Christ throughout the world, and exhaled his last breath. It was August 10, 258.

 

The Martyrdon of Saint Lawrence

by Rubens

1614

A morning at the Denver Botanic Gardens to see the Alebrijes created by the workshop of Jacobo and María Ángeles

 

Amadillo - Insect

Jacobo and María Ángeles are married artists living in San Martín Tilcajete in Oaxaca, Mexico.  It is a taller (workshop) that I have often taken my groups to. 

Created by the workshop of the Ángeles', these brightly colored and intricately painted sculptures adorn the grounds of the Denver Botanic Gardens.  These animals are inspired by the Zapotec calendar, also known as Spirit Guides.  Unlike the animals carved from the native Copal wood in their taller, these are made of fiberglass and painted with acrylics.

  

Jaguar - Eagle

The flowers were spectacular at the gardens.
 

Coyote ~ Fish

 

 Nature is so beautiful!  A cobweb among the plants with the morning dew on it. 

Rabbit ~ Deer

The lily ponds are some of my favorite spots at the gardens.

Deer ~ Butterfly

Monkey ~ Lizard

More water lilies.  Such vibrant colors.

Back in Oaxaca, photos taken on one of my tours.  These wooden carved figures are called Alebrijes.  

The first alebrijes originated in Mexico City, originally created by artist Pedro Linares in the 1940's who created Cartoneria or papier-mâché sculptures.   The papier-mâché-to-wood carving adaptation was pioneered by Arrazola native Manuel Jimenez whom I was fortunate to visit with when traveling with my parents years and years ago.  This version of the craft has since spread to several other towns in Oaxaca, most notably San Martín Tilcajete and La Unión Tejalapan, and has become a significant source of income for the area, especially for San Martín.

The carvers allow the shape of the wood dictate the form of the imaginary animals they create.

 

One needs a steady hand for this delicate work.

To really grasp the talent and creativity that goes into each of these animals, one really should visit one of the many tallers in San Martín Tilcajete, a place where I am taking another group to in March of 2025.

Fiestas are prominent in Oaxaca and an expression of their imagination.  As an Oaxacan saying goes, "We are Catholic by day and Zapotec by night."  How true in their depiction of the alebrijes.