Elena Felipe and Bernardina Rivera are indigenous artisans that live in the state of Michoácan, Mexico. They both speak their native tongue, Tarascan, and are fluent in the language of potters. In the village they live in, as in many other villages in the region, the artistic vocation is attributed to the early influence of don Vasco de Quiroga who, taking into account the skills and traditions of the communities, assigned each one a trade to which they were to dedicate themselves.

Quiroga introduced the potter's wheel and invited the natives to fabricate jugs since the scarcity of water in the area made them ideal for transporting and storing the liquid. The elaboration of jugs here has evolved into the creation of the high towers which permit a great amount of water to be stored in a small area within each home. They are exquisitely decorated with finely detailed flowers, hummingbirds and butterflies.

Both these women are indigenous Purépecha and inherited their trade. From an early age, these two artisans were in contact with the world of clay and their mastery is obvious in each of the magnificent pieces, especially the celebrated towers of pots which show off their technical and artistic talents. They are passing on their trade to their children.

On three occasions the women have received the top prize in the state competition in Michoacán, as well as a national prize for their towers of pots and the Premio Fomento Cultural Banamex.

They obtain their clay from deposits on communal land. With picks, shovels, machetes and other implements, they excavate the clay, filling buckets or sacks and returning home.

The clay dries for two or three days and then is crushed with heavy stones. All debris is removed and then it is ground in a mortar and sifted until they have a fine powder. The clay is moistened and sealed in plastic. The following day, they knead the clay on a makeshift table. The process is slow in that care must be taken to remove all lumps and air bubbles which might result in cracking. The next step is the molding or modeling of the piece. The kneaded clay is formed into balls and then flattened into pancakes. The table is coated with the fine clay powder to avoid the material sticking.

Once the thin pancake is ready, it is applied to the mold and smoothed into place with a damp rag. A fine thread is used to cut off any excess. Jugs and pots are formed with two molds, the two pieces later joined together to completed the item.

Once the pieces are removed from the molds, they are set in the shade to completely dry. Then they are given a coat of charanda, a brown soil pigment, after which they are polished with a pyrite stone and then a cloth. After polishing comes the decorating. Fine brushes made from cat hair are used to apply the paints they prepare from clay and water.

The work of these two women is Mexican folk art at its finest. They are featured in the landmark book, "Great Masters of Mexican Folk Art."

Contact information:
Pascual Orozco 6
Huancito, Michoacán
355 534 0040 (caseta)

Or contact Marianne Carlson at (from the US) 01152 376 765 7485 or email marianne carlson@gmail.com.