Huichol art

The "modern" beadwork usually consists of masks and wood sculptures covered in small, brightly colored commercial beads fastened with wax and resin.

Many outsiders experience Huichol art as tourists in areas such as Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, without knowing about the people who make the items, and the meanings of the designs.

There are some notable Huichol artists in the yarn painting and beadwork fields, and both types of work have been commissioned for public display and is considered a high value craft.

They converted to Christianity in the colonial period by Franciscan missionaries, most of the native Huichol culture managed to survive intact due to the isolation, and because the area lacked mineral or other resources of interest to the Spanish.

[1][3] Mexican historian and anthropologist Fernando Benítez states that the Huichols have probably maintained their ancient belief systems better than any other indigenous group in Mexico.

[1] What mostly links the yarn paintings and beaded objects made today is the continuance of the traditional patterns used for centuries to represent and communicate with the gods.

Medina's work came to the attention of American Peter Furst, who suggested that Ramón represent the traditions and beliefs of his people by pressing colored yarn into a wax and resin-covered baseboard.

Nierikas were initially produced by shamans to represent visions they experienced while consuming peyote, then left as offerings to the gods in places such as caves, temples and streams.

[4] Selling of the items has not been easy for the Huichol either, with limited outlets such as tourist venues, especially Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara and San Miguel de Allende as well as sales to middlemen who can earn much more from the works than they can.

[6] José Benítez Sánchez is a shaman-artist, who helped to expand yarn painting from its early decorative function to larger more vision like pieces.

[8] In 2013 Mexican portrait documentary 'Echo of the Mountain', originally known in Spanish as Eco de la montaña[9] directed by Nicolás Echevarría released based on his experiences during the mural creation.

Although the yarn paintings and items decorated with beads are the best known and most widely sold pieces, the Huichols continue to make a number of other types of folk art and handcrafts.

These masks evolved from small gourd bowls originally covered in seeds, bone, clay, coral and shell, but these have been replaced by commercially produced beads.

It is from these masks that the modern practice of covering wooden sculptures of snakes, dolls, small animals, jaguar heads and other forms is derived.

Mesquite and the color reddish brown belong to Tatewari, who is of the earth and the wood of the Brazil tree is related to Tayuapa or "Father Sun."

Sashes and belts often have designs that mimic the markings on the backs of snakes, which are also associated with rain, along with good crops, health and long life.

In 2010, the Institute of the Americas at the University of California, San Diego, held an exhibit of Huichol art targeting tourists who visit the west coast of Mexico, especially those who traveled by boat.

[13] One of the most recent commissioned works is the "Vochol," a Volkswagen Beetle which was covered in Huichol designs using 2,277,000 beads fastened to the body of the car using a special heat-resistant resin.

The car was commissioned by the Association of Friends of the Museo de Arte Popular and other public and private enterprises to be auctioned off to benefit Mexican artisans.