What do we know about the burnished ware, fantasía, talavera, lottery drawings, lacquerware, and such? In Mexico, these arts have always been referred to in their native Spanish as arte popular (popular art), meaning the art of the people. In the United States, a lot of collectors use the term folk arts, but the meanings are one and the same. Whichever term you choose to use, Americans have been bringing home huge quantities for decades and usually some form of pottery heads the list.

Without a doubt, pottery is first and foremost the most widely collected of all of the Mexican arts and is considered Mexico’s most important traditional art form. It was made all over Mexico with each region having its own distinctive type and style. The two most important towns for pottery collectors, in the early twentieth century, were the Guadalajara, Jalisco area (specifically the villages of Tonalá, Tlaquepaque and Santa Cruz de las Huertas) and Puebla, Puebla. Both were renown for their earthenware production, and each is distinctly different from the other.

The Guadalajara area produced several types of pottery, but the majority of buyers were attracted to the highly decorated glazed or burnished wares. Glazed pottery is generally referred to as "tourist pottery" from Tlaquepaque. In reality, this type of pottery could have been produced anywhere in the Guadalajara area. The most widely collectable era is from 1920-60. Glazed pottery was slipped, brush painted, fired twice and often included other design techniques such as petatillo, night, fantasía, grained and molded relief. Design motifs included flora, fauna, people, but Americans favored those with the Mexican campesino and his donkey. Burnished ware was slipped, brush painted and finally polished to a high gloss, using a piece of pyrite, before its single firing. Most of this pottery’s design motifs are floral or the bird of paradise.

The Guadalajara area also produced monos, three dimensional clay sculptures. These clay figures are an excellent medium for ethnographic study because they realistically portrayed the people down to the smallest detail. Early twentieth century travelers often asked a member of the great Panduro family (best known for their figural production) to come to their hotel, where in just thirty minutes, they were presented with their own image immortalized in clay. The total cost was a mere $10.00-15.00 in 1925. The Mexican presidents and generals are superb examples of their sculpting talents.

Down the road in Santa Cruz de las Huertas, an artist by the name of Julián Acero was making a name for himself with his clay animal banks. Both mold and handmade, these banks give us a glimpse into the potter's sense of humor. Can you refrain from smiling while admiring a green lion, a polka dotted goat, or a pink dog? Purchased for very little back then, Acero pieces command high prices today.

The next stop for pottery, specifically talavera, would have been Puebla, Puebla, just a short distance to the Southeast of Mexico City. By the mid 1600s the talavera industry was in full swing. Guilds were organized that implemented high production standards and recorded maker’s marks, consequently much talavera bears the mark of the producing entity.

The talavera process requires a long apprenticeship in all stages of production, from the initial mixing of clays to forming the objects, and lastly a great knowledge of pigments. Pre-fired colors can vary greatly from post-fired colors, i.e., yellow in its pre-fired state is a pinkish color. But after the fire’s magic, talavera pottery emerges in vibrant blues, greens and ochres.

Buyers flocked to Puebla to buy a variety of talavera. Besides jars, vases, dinnerware, lamps and candlesticks, many came to special order talavera tiles for a bathroom or kitchen. In 1939, writer Catharine Oglesby bought enough tiles to cover an eight by ten bathroom, (walls and floors) for a grand total of $28.00, much to the amazement of the customs officer.

Collectors visiting Puebla found another clay manifestation that captured their hearts as well. Dangling from wooden crosspieces by several strings, marionettes produced from clay and wood found new stages in U.S. private homes. The cast of characters consisted of stage and screen stars or political and regional favorites. To complete the realistic image, marionettes were dressed in handmade clothing, which could resemble Saks Fifth Avenue’s finest or simple cotton rags.

Mexico City sold popular arts produced all over the country and became the mecca for collectors. Not only did the capital house some of the finest folk art shops to be found in Mexico, but it produced many popular arts there as well such as straw mosaics, bas-relief wood panels and wax figures.

Straw mosaics were one of the most intricate art forms produced in Mexico. Thousands of pieces of straw compose truly incredible images, that when viewed across a room look very similar to a fine watercolor. Only when one studies the images close-up can this art form truly be appreciated. In the early twentieth century, there were several very good artists of this medium, but the Olay family is the "cream of the crop" and mosaic collectors strive to have an Olay piece in their collection.

A very short-lived art form, also made in Mexico City, was the bas-relief wood panel. These three dimensional renderings of Mexican life were carved from one piece of wood (usually white mahogany), and painted upon completion. The originator of the technique was Roberto De La Selva, a young man from Nicaragua, who studied wood carving techniques from the Apizaco Indians. Others followed his techniques and luckily for today’s collector, most of these panels are signed.

A new genre of figures, made from beeswax, gained popularity in Mexico by the mid 1800’s. Evolving out of the Spaniards love for nacimientos (nativity scenes), the wax sculptor soon expanded his repertoire to all subjects. Some of the finest examples were produced by Andrés García and members of the Hidalgo family.

The Mexican artist’s genius for creating art out of nature’s by products was never-ending and the coconut bank is another prime example. Carved with infinite patience and time, the prisoners of San Juan de Ulúa produced intricate motifs covering the entire surface in four different techniques. Purchased for $2.00-$3.00 in 1923, these little gems can bring five hundred times that much today.

The states of Guerrero & Michoacán were renown for their lacquerware production. After the lacquer artists joined forces with the carpenters, a whole new art sprang forth. Interestingly, often these pieces are found in United States antique shops and shows, mistakenly labeled as Norwegian, Swedish or American. Techniques and designs are the keys for determining origins. For example, in Uruapan, Michoacán, they used the embutido (inlaid) method of decoration, whereby design areas are hollowed out and subsequently filled in with pigments in the most beautiful pinks, blues, greens and yellows.

Almost all visitors to Mexico sojourned to the town’s central square or zócalo. Among the bustling activities encountered there, they might find a game of lotería (lottery) in progress. The Mexican people enjoyed playing their own version of bingo or attended just for the entertainment aspect. The game masters employed criers who called the game in prose, instead of numbers. Often the crier improvised his verse on the spot, singling out some member of the audience. The cards utilized in the games were all hand-painted and framed in tin or wood and have a universal appeal to folk art collectors.

Mexican sarapes and rugs have been woven in all regions of Mexico, but most regions have their own particular style. The sarape originated as wearing apparel, sported by the charro (showy individual or cowboy). It kept him warm, shielded him from the rain and cold, or simply looked good rolled up behind his saddle when riding. Early twentieth century sarapes though evolving in design, retained many of the fine qualities as the classic, such as fineness of weave and technical excellence.

A home filled with these treasures create a warm and colorful environment and today’s Mexican popular arts collector finds many ways to display them. Our grandmothers can rest easy knowing that we continue to cherish each item that she so carefully and lovingly purchased long ago.

© Donna McMenamin