We had decided to introduce the Bans to our favorite among the several “craft routes” in Oaxaca state: the road that leads south to the town of Ocotlan de Morelos. We had hired a van through our hotel, and hit the jackpot: a new, very comfortable van with a great driver, Manriquez; he spoke about 12 words of English, and spoke Spanish at great speed, but I was often able to get the gist. He proved to be a great driver, and someone who had intimate knowledge of the entire region.
Patti tells us that Ocotlan retains much of the feeling and pace of the Oaxaca of years ago. It is a casual, friendly, and enormously charming place. The town huddles around a verdant central square bounded on one side by the municipal hall and on another by one of the great markets of Oaxaca.
But, before exploring the center of town, we stopped just as we entered Ocotlan at one of our favorite places: the workshop of the great folk artist Josefina Aguilar.
Aguilar creates clay figurines (muñecas) from village life; she learned her art from her mother, as did her sisters Guillermina, Irene, and Concepcion. Although all four work in the same medium, each sister’s work is clearly distinguishable from that of her sisters. Josefina’s career has eclipsed that of her sisters, though, perhaps because of its greater rusticity. The somewhat primitive charm of the figurines is lifted by an eye for detail and a striking sense of humor. The prices are ridiculously low for the work of an artist held in major private and public collections around the world. I paid forty dollars for an extremely detailed market woman that stands 10″ tall.
One important detail: Josefina became blind in 2014 and since then has shaped the figures but not painted them. She said recently to a collector “It’s not the eyes. It’s the hand and the brain.” I have figurines from 2019, 2022, and now 2023, and it is clear that the modeling is becoming less defined and precise–with no evident loss of evocative power. Much of the painting is now done by Josefina’s son Demetrios; he now undertakes much of the international marketing of his mother’s reputation. I turned out that he had recently conducted a workshop at the Princeton Day School, down the street from Vladimir and Connie’s home.
We also toured the workshop of another Aguilar sister, Guillermina. Josefina’s workshop has clearly been kept in a primitive state that reflects the quality of her work: dirt floors, rough tables displaying the art, a comal and table with family members eating their lunch. Guillermina’s, by contrast, is tidy and modern. And that is reflected in her work, which is more “finished” than that of Josefina.
From the Aguilar workshops we drove into town and entered into a lengthy engagement with the town’s other major artistic figure, the painter Rodolfo Morales. Although his work was recognized relatively late, at 50, his reputation rose rapidly and he was soon regarded alongside Rufino Tomato and Francisco Toledo as one of Mexico’s leading artists. We started with the deeply engaging murals he painted for the town hall.
Like virtually every major Mexican artist, Morales was engaged with issues of social justice. Look at the watermelon seller: with her green skin and red dress, she has become her wares.
Morales used much of his considerable wealth to improve his home town. He undertook the restoration of the town’s central church…making it one of the loveliest we’ve seen in Mexico.
As we entered the church, we were very disappointed to learn that we would not be permitted to use the confetti that we had brought to celebrate our arrival in Ocotlan!
And then there were three amigos outside the church…
The convent attached to the church had been converted into a beautiful space for the display of Morales’ work. You are greeted by a wonderful portrait figurine by Josefina Aguilar.
Some of her larger works are also displayed throughout the museum.
There are rooms full of his remarkable collages, and two large galleries for his paintings, which mix a deep respect for the labor of the indigenous peoples of Oaxaca with a sly native surrealism.
We spent a bit of time strolling around in town; we encountered this important edifice along the way.
In the arcades around the town square, we found this hat maker and, next door, an embroidery shop owned by the hat maker’s daughter. Connie and Patti both found some lovely headbands.
We then plunge into the depths of the market. Bread anyone?
Or grasshoppers?
Or lots of tortillas?
And we paid our annual visit to La Cocina de Frida, where Beatriz Vazquez channels the artist (the food is supposed to be splendid).
Off to San Martin Tilcajete, the carver’s village. We love the food at the roadside restaurant Azucena Zapoteca, and especially the blue corn quesadillas with Oaxacan cheese and squash blossoms. But, to our dismay, it was closed for an event. Manriquez suggested an alternative, Tierra Magica, which was pleasant, but the food was forgettable.
Once in the village, we visited two workshops. The first, Efrain Fuentes, is one of the best known carvers; he has an international reputation. Much of his work is playful. I’m afraid I was too absorbed to take pictures. But we were enormously taken with a colorful jaguar on a swing…if only it had been priced for our grandsons!
And then we paid our annual visit to the workshop of Jacobo and Maria Angeles, who are now superstars of the international folk art scene.
Like Morales, the Angeles are communitarians; they employ more than 100 people from their village, training them for high-end production and sales.
I didn’t intend to buy anything, but, even if I had, the work was now completely out of our price range. I showed one of the managers my raccoon, and he estimated that the price had risen tenfold in the four years since I bought it.
Our next stop was San Bartolo Coyotepec, the home of the famous Oaxacan black pottery.
We have never found a huge difference between producers, so we shop at the collective.
The collective sits at the edge of the lovely town park, with lush foliage and a bandstand.
Back in town, we were in for another memorable night of Oaxacan cuisine. We had a drink at the bar at our restaurant, Origen, and then proceeded upstairs to a very elegant dining room…passing by a display of the heirloom corn that goes into the restaurants tortillas, tamales, puzzle, etc.
The meal was spectacular; my first course, enchiladas filled with duck confit, bananas, pears, apples, and raisins and covered with the best and most subtle mole negros I’ve ever eaten, was one of the best dishes I’ve ever had.
Aided by our exceptionally amiable and knowledgable waiter, we put on a little mezcal tasting to finish off.
We compared mezcals made from four different wild agaves: Barril, Madrecuishe, Tepeztate, and Arrequeno. Two had been distilled in traditional copper stills (the artisanal process), and two in clay pots (the ancestral process.)
It had been quite a day!