"Arden Rothstein (New York U. Psychoanalytic Institute) and daughter Anya share their love of the contemporary folk art of Oaxaca, Mexico, in this guide for beginning collectors. Ten chapters cover ceramics, textiles, woodcarving, metal work, miniatures and toys, jewelry, candles, basketry, dried flower crafts, and images from the Day of the Dead. Sample pieces by 87 artists are featured, with information on current market values included. The guide is illustrated with some 500 color photographs. Oversize: 9.5x11"." -- Publisher.
Welcome to the family! It's just like yours: father, mother, sister, brother, abuelita, gato, even a great-great grandmother. Well, but there's something just a little bit different about this particular family. Maybe it's those clothes they wear . . . just a little bit fashion backward. And the colors! So vibrant and . . . lively. Maybe that's what it is. They are just so full of life while looking almost other worldly. Cynthia Weill's latest bilingual book for young readers teaches basic information about relationships, while also celebrating the colorful tradition of Mexico's Day of the Dead. Artist Jesus Canseco Zarate long-limbed sculptures are a playful twist on traditional Mexican iconography of the skeleton that stretches back through the country's art history to José Gualdalupe Posada's engravings and Aztec sculpture. Chosen as one of the Best Children's Books Of The Year by the Children's Book Committee and by the Cooperative Children's Book Center Cynthia Weill holds a doctorate in education from Teachers College Columbia University. She is on the board of the Friends of Oaxacan Folk Art which seeks to promote and preserve the artists and artisanal work of that Mexican state. La Familia is her fifth book featuring the folk art of Oaxaca. Jesus Canseco Zarate is a young Oaxacan folk artist whose medium of choice is paper mâché. In 2008 he won first prize in the Friends of Oaxacan Folk Art completion for young artists.
Alan Eliot Goldberg has navigated pot-holed roads to remote, sleepy Mexican Villages in pursuit of folk art for almost 60 years that resulted in a 1,000 piece Mexican Folk Art Collection he recently donated to The Mexican Museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate. In the spring of 2020 everything changed in Oaxaca as covid-19 spread throughout the region. To limit contamination the villages sealed themselves off from the outside world, but the virus spread rapidly. As a result of this action, the artists had little or no sales for their folk art and therefore no sustainable income. Alan Goldberg organized a Covid-19 themed folk art competition and the entries were so compelling he decided to undertake an art book featuring pieces from the competition. The book is in two parts. The first part explores the surrounding landscape, heritage, and culture of the indigenous Oaxacan people, and opens a window into the artists imagination, the way they meet adversity with humor, bewilderment and resilience as they cope with Covid-19. The second part is a catalogue containing photographs of the artists and a description and photographs of their work. One critic remarked, Alan Goldberg's beautifully illustrated book presents a difficult subject in difficult times treated ln a straightforward way, naturally as life itself.
"Though their work is informed by a shared sense of culture, place, and identity as women, each artist has her own unique style, source of inspiration, and approach to her craft. Daily life and flights of fancy, spiritual devotion and earthly concerns all find expression in these finely crafted and beautifully colored ceramic marvels, including street scenes and nativities, Virgins and Zapotec creatures, vases, plates, candleholders, and figures of Frida Kahlo."--BOOK JACKET.
"Direct and charming."—Publishers Weekly Cynthia Weill’s book of Mexican folk art teaches kids about opposites in Spanish and English! These whimsical little animals from Oaxaca, carved and painted by hand, make learning about opposites fun. Up and down, tall and short, left and right—all inside a beautiful book. En este libro de artesanía mexicana, Cynthia Weill le enseña a niños sobre opuestos en español e ingles! Estos animalitos fantasiosos de Oaxaca, tallados y pintados a mano, hacen aprender sobre opuestos divertido. Arriba y abajo, alto y pequeño, izquierda y derecha—todo adentro de un libro encantador. "This second work by one of the authors of ABeCedarios (2007) follows its predecessor's highly praised concept and design. Pages on the left side introduce children to a word in English and Spanish, as pages on the right side present its opposite: Asleep/Dormido (a spotted dog snoozes)/AwakeDespierto (the same dog, eyes wide open and tail sticking up). "Concepts are illustrated with photographs of unique hand-painted animal carvings created individually by Oaxacan artists Quirino and Martin Santiago. The contrast between the text colors and the bright background combines with the imaginary dialogue that children can establish with the vivacious folk-art figures to make this bilingual edition another outstanding entry in the First Concepts with Mexican Folk Art series. On some pages an external element-a sun or a moon, for instance-expands on such concepts as Day/Día and Night/Noche. "A great selection for bilingual storytimes at preschools, elementary schools and public libraries. As a work of art, its display will enhance art exhibits and cultural programs as part of Hispanic Heritage Month or Children's Day/Book Day celebrations." —Kirkus Reviews
The aim of this book is to engender Mexican folk art and locate women at its centre by studying the processes of creation, distribution, and consumption, as well as examining iconographic aspects, and elements of class and ethnicity, from the perspective of gender. The author will demonstrate that the topic provides unique insights into Mexican culture, and has enormous relevance within and without the country, given the fact that much folk art is made for the United States and Europe, either in terms of the tourists who buy it on coming to Mexico, or that which is exported.
Filled with brilliant images representing the remarkable diversity of Mexican folk art, this celebration of 180 living artists gathers together their best work in clay, wood, metal, textiles, and stone.
