Handcrafts and folk art in Chiapas
Chiapas handcrafts and folk art is most represented with the making of pottery, textiles and amber products, though other crafts such as those working with wood, leather and stone are also important.
These items generally cannot compete with commercially made goods, but rather are sold for their cultural value, primarily in San Cristóbal de las Casas.
[5] While men are generally found making certain crafts, such as those from wood and leather, the two main handcrafts, pottery and textiles, are dominated by women.
[3] Like in other parts of the country, many handcraft sales are to tourists and collectors, who often want a piece of Mexico's indigenous and popular culture, such as blouses made by women of the Chiapas highlands.
[3] In 2002, a group of artisans from San Cristóbal de las Casas won the UNESCO Handcrafts Prize for Latin America and the Caribbean, with a handwoven and embroidered textile collection entitled Juegos Blancos.
[3] Since then, the designs of most handcrafted items have become markedly mestizo, but, they still have relationships with the various indigenous peoples of the state, such as the Lacandons, the Chols, the Tzeltals, the Tzotzil, the Tojolabal, the Chuj, the Jacalteco, the Mame and the Motozintleco.
[2] In 2012 an effort by the Tec de Monterrey, Santa Fe and several foundations worked to teach and improve commercialization techniques for the benefit of about 500 artisans in the state, enlisting the support of Mexican and U.S.
[1][4] The most common pottery items are everyday utensils such as pots, casseroles, comals, jars, cantaros, vases, candle holders, and flowerpots.
[1] The figures that made it famous are of jaguars and doves, but others such as those of roosters, turtles, frogs, tigers and other animals as well as jars, and decorative items of the sun and moon.
Most of the textiles produced are for local use, starting with simpler designs for everyday wear, then moving onto more complicated and decorated garb as they get older and more experienced.
[8] Most of the designs are in strong colors such as red, yellow, turquoise blue, white, purple, pink and deep green but some pastels are also combined with these.
The basic traditional garment for women is the huipil, and each indigenous community has its own style,[8] particularly in Tenejapan, Zinacantan, Ocosingo, Larrainzar, Venustiano Carranza.
It is the oldest artisan organization in the Chiapas highlands, founded in 1976, by American W. Morris and indigenous weaver Petul and is supported by the Fondo Nacional para el Fomento de las Artesanías (FONART).
The lacquerware is coated and decorated using fine brushes, but the products tend to be limited to gourds, bowls and “toles.” In the past a wider variety of objects were lacquered such as religious items and furniture.
[8] The state also supports a lacquer museum, which was founded in 1952 by anthropologist Alfonso Caso to demonstrate the pre Hispanic origins of the craft, its techniques and materials.
It is similar in quality as that from the Dominican Republic, but it has its own characteristics, such as the type of plants and insects that can be found trapped in the pieces with colors ranging from near transparent to very dark.
Most of the finished amber products are sold in San Cristóbal de las Casas, but pieces have been exported to the United States and Europe.
[14] A challenge faced by artisans and vendors in the main market is tourists, who often cannot tell the real material from plastic or glass, and will buy the cheaper item, even if it is not authentic.
[1] Musical instruments such as strings, percussion, wind and high quality marimbas in fine woods are made in Tecpatán, Ocosingo, San Juan Chamula and Venustiano Carranzo.
[4][8] Wood is also used to make a variety of products including tools, decorative figures, cooking utensils, ceremonial masks, toys (tops, miniatures, etc.)
[1] Chiapa de Corzo is noted for the making of wooden bowls, spoons, toys, masks and more, a significant number of which are destined to be lacquered.
It represents how the Spanish looked to the indigenous, with a high forehead, thin nose, light-colored eyes, red cheeks and mustache and beard.
[4] Iron is worked mostly for making plows and other agricultural implements, but other items such as decorative elements for buildings such as balconies and railings are also produced.
[1][8] The working of stone is a relatively new and growing craft, much of which is dedicated to making reproduction of Mayan artifacts, especially those of Palenque, made in the modern town of the same name and nearby Salta del Agua.
[1] Traditional toys are also made from materials such as cartonería, fabric, ixtle, tin and reeds, mainly in Tenejapa and San Juan Chamula.
[1] This ethnic group also makes jewelry, mostly necklaces and bracelets from various native seeds including ARECACEAE: Sabal mexicana Martius, Desmoncus orthacanthos Mart., CANNACEAE: Canna edulis Ker.
POACEAE: Coix lacryma-jobi L., and SAPINDACEAE: Sapindus saponaria L.[16] Leather working was introduced to the state by the Spanish and is currently done to make items such as handbags, saddles, shoes, scabbards for knives and machetes and more.
[1] Other handcrafted items include earrings made in gold filigree, hammocks in Berriozabal, and sombreros in San Juan Chamula and Ocosingo.
