Celebrations

Thursday was the 49th anniversary of Radio San Miguel and also the 35th anniversary of the Casa de la Cultura in San Miguel.  Besides video of Chilo Botes, tin artisan,  singing at the radio station, (video to come) there was folklorico dancing in the Jardin at dusk followed by music into the evening. Here's a movie of the folklorico  dancers with dances from Guerrero, Nuevo Laredo, Veracruz and Mexico City/Jalisco.

[Vimeo 14511498]

Tin Workers

Over the years of exporting Mexican Artesania, I have continually been drawn back to the tin artisans who reside not only in San Miguel de Allende, but in Oaxaca, Guanajuato, Celaya, Mexico City.


The malleable quality of tin (hojolata) copper (cobre) and brass (laton) they work in allows the artist to create beautiful repousse, punched and multi layered work.  It is nothing short of miraculous to see a solid surface become bowl like, the shape of animals, trees, hearts.


Most of the work here is still done the old way, hammered on lead plugs or into indentations on their palos - tree stumps with smoothed out indentations from the years of hammering and rolling the ball edge of a hammer around a piece of tin.


This year, I began video interviews with the oldest tin workers.  Those who were here when metal work was only done for utilitarian pieces - milk cans, oil lamps, cooking stoves, utensils for the home.  Those artists who were here before foreigners came to town with ideas for decorative pieces and the money to entice the metal workers to fabricate the first decorative pieces for the home, the pieces that would lead to the metal art you find today.


The project, which has become an obsession of sorts, is coming together, starting with the history of metal and metal arts including artists who have been working in tin for over 40 years, the story of how it happened here in San Miguel de Allende.

Here is a 2 minute short of one of the oldest artists, who remembers what it was like in 1944 when San Miguel de Allende was a town of about 7,000 people,  and no artisan metalwork being done.  It was a time where metal work was of utilitarian purpose, made and carried on the backs of burros to the ranchos to sell.

[Vimeo 14131039]

The entire documentary will be exhibited/shown in the Jardin as a part of the Feria de la Lana y el Laton this November as a tribute to these older artisan families.

[slideshow]

You're Kidding, Right?

This morning,
There's a long knock on the door
Followed by three long rings of the doorbell.

By now, I know that's not the sound of my neighbors calling.
I go to the upstairs window and see this guy
And another dressed just like him cross the street,
knocking on everyone's doors.

[caption id="attachment_3740" align="alignnone" width="248" caption="Fumigator"][/caption]

When I ask what he wants
He commands me, as if he is an official of the city,
"open the door I'm coming in to fumigate."
As flabberghasted as I was I managed to politely say
"No thank you, we don't use chemicals in our house,
Instead of  "You're kidding, right?"

Let the Independence Begin!

The Bicentennario, Mexico's 200th Independence celebrations are a little over a month away, although activities have been going on for about a month now and the gang's all here!  Today at noon, casually strolling down the street, posing for cameras, came five mojiganga's dressed for the revolution.

Miguel Hidalgo:

[caption id="attachment_3673" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Miguel Hidalgo"][/caption]

Ignacio Allende:

[caption id="attachment_3671" align="alignnone" width="321" caption="Ignacio Allende"][/caption]

Three Spanish women. The woman on the right is Doña Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez.  Allende, Hidalgo and Domínguez, together, rang the bell in the church of Dolores, performing the first 'Grito de Dolores' the call for freedom which is now enacted on every independence day, calling the people together to fight for their independence.

[caption id="attachment_3670" align="alignnone" width="304" caption="Here they come, the women, followed by Allende & Hidalgo"][/caption]