Quince Weave
Casa Santiago: Rugweavers Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
Alvin Starkman MA, LL.B.
Porfirio Santiago is at his loom, diligently weaving a 2 x 3 meter rug with traditional designs, from memory, with representations of Zapotec diamonds, rain, corn and mountains … like his father Tomás, grandfather Ildefonso and great grandfather before him. Wife Gloria is the carding a mixture of white and caramel colored raw wool. Behind them, hanging over the black wrought iron banister overlooking the sunny open courtyard are drying batches of spun wool in shades of green products brown, red and blue, the use of natural dyes of the indigo plant, seed pods, mosses, nuts, peel of pomegranate, and of course cochineal.
Such rituals in Teotitlan del Valle, an ancient tribal town about half-hour Car of Oaxaca, has been played continuously on a daily basis since about 1535, when Dominican bishop Juan López de Zárate arrived in the village and introduced Sheep (sheeplike goat wool animal performance) and the first loom, shipped from Spain across the Atlantic. The use of natural dyes and weaving before of conquest, but it was the European invasion which jump-started a cottage industry producing blankets, blankets and rugs (rugs).
For generations the village grew, and began to specialize in unique rugs, initially used as trade and sale of items within a commercial network of cities in other parts of the state, and to a lesser extent other regions of the country. With the completion of the Pan American highway connecting Oaxaca City Mexico in late 1940, the open market. In the 1950s air travel had begun to facilitate greater exports and a tourism industry quickly realized that a wide range of handcrafted items from foreign lands.
Crafts Casa Santiago is composed of a single extended family, whose main
production facility, showroom and family has been on the main street of the city since 1966. Then Porfirio occupied most of his working hours as a peasant in the fields, with rug production as a sideline. In the past he began spending fewer days working the land and over the production of rugs, both traditional Zapotec designs, and more recently, based on consumer demand, modern patterns, reproducing issues of the masters of modern art and accepting custom orders such as the recent request for a wall hanging promoting Pentax cameras.
Illustrative of the depth of this family tradition, five of Porfirio's six siblings and their families are weavers, the other a school teacher before. By Gloria hand, while his brothers are members a big band that plays music known in the municipal fiestas, weddings, fifteen years and other rites of passage, they too are trade artisans, although more about part-time basis. All of Porfirio and Gloria's children work in the industry, as well as their spouses. Three of the four sons and their wives live on premises and work in all phases of production, with the fourth higher than their own just up the street. One son, Omar, is an architect, but nevertheless an integral factor in all aspects of the family business. One of her daughters and her husband work in the main facility, another works in the studio of his political family and the restaurant a few blocks away, and the past and her husband have their own home and rug business. Each child completed high school, since then the decision to maintain the family tradition to the extent possible. As has been repeated for generations, the grandchildren, now 17 in number, while watching their parents and grandparents from infancy, begin learning in earnest about 10 years old, and approximately 20 who are proficient in all aspects of the operation. On the division of labor, years ago women tend to dye, card and spin, while men were the weavers. Today, at least in this family, each is fully capable of performing all tasks, although it is only men who work the looms larger requiring greater strength and endurance.
Another family convention has been the implementation of major administrative tasks for the town without monetary compensation, an aspect of the work volunteer in the community known as tequio. In 1931, Porfirio's grandfather was mayor of the village, and more recently, between 1996 and 1998, Porfirio himself The was mayor. By this time the work had become a post of three years without pay, however, requires a full time commitment, which required to make the crop, increasing and maintaining the family carpet business in the morning or evening. However, the pride and sense of responsibility in community service one took precedence over concerns about being able to get all the work done in 24 hours that had to be completed. Even today, Porfirio on a seasonal basis divides his time between making and selling woolen products, and working the fields to supply the family with corn for tortillas and tamales.
Despite being one of the most famous families one would expect to happen in the Valley of Oaxaca, Don Porfirio, and others. al. do not get the tour bus great store to come to your shows. Perhaps it is the personalities of family members who clearly does not lend itself to the formality of onlookers seated in a gallery to view a demonstration followed by a hard sell. Maria Luisa and her husband Jose Luis, Thomas, Hugo, and the rest of the family in hand seem to have learned from their parents to be more relaxed and attractive in a pleasant informal atmosphere. They'll take you to see all galvanized metal, plastic or clay pots happen to be in use for dyeing, and take more than a simple cardboard box to show you half a dozen so natural substances used for coloring wool. If Gloria is not available on the card and spin, perhaps a daughter-in-law-shy to say that she will do it, smiling as she admits she is not going as good as her mother. This is a real and honest attempt demonstrate the way things are actually done in the Santiago family, not at all artificial, and lack of pretense. It's what attracted me and my wife to the House of Santiago in 1993, for the purchase of our first table that even today continues to improve our living room floor. It reminds us again and again for a visit, often with a spur an unexpected offer of a little mezcal with a snack, either alone, with friends and family visiting from Canada and the USA, or with customers of tourism.
While Casa Santiago has over time been able to adapt to changing national and international trends in terms of color tones and combinations, designs and the variety of products (now also offering handbags, wall hangings, Pillow Covers and more)
is, proud ancient Zapotec custom of producing tightly woven, high quality traditional rugs that will live on through Porfirio, Gloria and their lineage.
Artensanias Casa Santiago, Av. Juarez 70, Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca 70 420. Tel: (951) 524-4154, (951) 524-4183. Web: http://www.artesaniascasasantiago.com .
About the Author
Alvin Starkman received his Masters in Social Anthropology in 1978. After teaching for a few years he attended Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, thereafter embarking upon a career as a litigator until 2004. Alvin now resides in Oaxaca, where he writes, leads small group tours to the villages, markets, ruins and other sites, is a consultant to film production companies, and operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast. ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ) .
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