A special style of handcarving wood is found among the artisans of Paracho, Michoacán. Before he begins, the carver needs to ensure that the wood he is using is completely dry. Then, taking into account the size and thickness of the piece he plans to make, he cuts away the excess material. He continues the work with chisels and burins, cutting and shaping the piece. Next, he draws the designs he will use and transfers them to the surface of the wood. He begins to engrave the motifs into the wood, taking great care as to how the relief work will appear, utilizing a variety of sharp knives.

The next step is a careful polishing of the wood utilizing planes and sandpaper until all splinters and projections are removed and the surface is smooth. The pieces are then assembled with adhesive many of them being left in their natural color.

As José Luis Cerda Báez, mastercraftsman, works with the wood, he looks to taking advantage of such characteristics as color, grain, knots and even stains, incorporating these elements into the decorative appearance of the piece.

His father, Don Alfredo Cerda Moreno, introduced the Paracho style to the town where José lives and works. His great aunt, Cuca Cerda, was one of the major proponents of handcrafts in this town. Young José Luis continued the family folk art tradition and at the age of fifteen began to learn the art of handcarving wood from his father.

His pieces are inspired by the utilitarian objects used daily by the Purépecha people. There are spoonholders, trunks, boxes of diverse sizes and a variety of miniatures such as the masks used by dancers in Michoacán. He has received numerous awards, among them second prize for one of his spoon holders featuring the Virgen de la Salud, at the Encuentro de Dos Mundos event in 1992.

Another of José Luis' accomplishments is using the heart of the cornstalks to create incredible Christ figures on the cross. Almost a lost art in Mexico.

Before the conquest of the Spanish, the Purépecha people fabricated images of their idols with the heart of cornstalks. Records from the 16th century relate that the Spanish missionaries who first arrived in Michoacán took advantage of this indigenous practice and began to elaborate images of the saints with this material, utilizing the technique to facilitate the process of the evangelization of the indigenous residents.

First the "bark" is removed from the thickest cornstalks and cut into various sizes. The pieces are then glued together with a vegetable adhesive which must be freshly made. The adhesive, whose recipe dates to pre-Hispanic times is known as tatzingueni is made from pulp from the cornstalks, ground into a powder. A sort of dough is made by adding the slimy juice from fresh nopal leaves which has been mixed with a ground mixture of leaves from the mula herb and the bulbs of a certain type of orchid that abounds in this area.

He continues adding more cornstalk centers and adhesive until a sort of thick form comes together that he ties with pita fibers and then sets aside to dry. When the figure is dry he removed the pita fibers and carves the object as if it were a piece of colorín wood. When the figure is dry, it is carefully polished prior to being painted.

José Luis Cerda Báez is a featured artist (page 245) in the fantastic art book produced by Banamex/Fomento Cultural, "Great Masters of Mexican Folk Art."

José attended the 2005 & 2005 Feria Maestros del Arte art exhibition in Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico. His incredible handcarved folkart is the best of what Mexican art has to offer.

If you are interested in purchasing some of José Luis' work, call Marianne Carlson at 011522 376 765 7485 or email mariannecarlson@gmail.com

(Our thanks to Karen Henderson for the use of her photographs)