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What is Feria Maestros del Arte?
Organized by an army of volunteers, artists do not pay any fees or percentage of sales. They are housed with local families, fed, and assisted with transportation if needed. Their participation in the fair is a unique community event. Every year, extraordinary cross-cultural bonds are forged between families of diverse backgrounds. For many artists, it is their first contact with the outside art world. The idea for Feria Maestros del Arte evolved from a trip I (Marianne Carlson) took with a friend to 17 artisan villages between Chapala and Pátzcuaro in March, 2002. I realized I was meeting artists whose work the average person would never have a chance to see. When questioned about where they sold their work, most of the artists said in their homes or at yearly ferias (fairs) in local towns. So, why not have a feria in Chapala? I took a chance and put together the first Maestros del Arte which hosted 13 artists. The show was well received and the artists' sales were so good. My first inclination in developing the show was to make it a "for profit" event that might help with the income I need to support myself here in Mexico. After working with these wonderful people that first year, it suddenly didn't matter anymore that I make money. I simply wanted the opportunity to meet more artists and be exposed to the incredible folk art that would later become so important in shaping my new life south of the border. Bringing the artists together at the Feria: (1) affords the public the opportunity to see the work of some of Mexico’s finest artists, (2) allows each artist another venue to exhibit and sell their work, possibly making connections for future sales enabling them to continue making a living selling their art, (3) gives the artists the opportunity to meet one another, develop new friendships and connections, and (4) offers a vehicle to promote the indigenous and folk art of Mexico while at the same time educating the public that such art is on the brink of becoming endangered and disappearing forever. Why
do we do it? Here is a wonderful news article that captures the essence of what Feria Maestros del Arte is trying to achieve - "Endangered Artists" by Jerry Lara, a feature of MySanAntonio.com. As he says at the beginning of this slide show, "A drop in tourism since 9-11. Chinese knock offs. The disappearance of demand for higher quality Mexican Folk Art. Government indifference. There are plenty of theories as to why the family artisan tradition in Mexico may be lost." Pacific News Service ran this article - "Mexico's Artisans Abandon Their Crafts - Guitar-Makers of Paracho Compete with Factories of Asia" in 1995. Even then, it was becoming evident that Mexico was in danger of losing many of its artists because of cultural and outside influences. Read it for yourself! This is why we try and help these creative people maintain generations of what could become "endangered" art. Here
is an excerpt from that article: "In Michoacán, at least
40,000 families live from what they make by hand. But they're so dependent
on pass-through tourist sales that all it takes to cripple a village is
for the federal government to build a highway around the town. This happened
to the village of Tzintzuntzan years ago and its ceramics industry lost
all its vitality. More than half the village's residents now live in Mexico
City, Santa Ana, or Tacoma." Where
do we find the Maestros? Next a trip is planned
to find and meet the new artists. Trips have taken me through the mountains
of Michoacán, the desolate Chihuahuan desert, and miles of nothing
between isolated towns. Often, I will arrive in a village only to find
that the artist no longer practices their craft, my information is incorrect,
or the artist has passed away. Most of the artists do not have a street address so it's door-to-door until someone points the travelers in the right direction. With introductions over, and the artist aware of why I have come to see his/her work, we begin to discuss the viability of having the artist attend Feria Maestros del Arte. Who
are the Maestros? If indigenous and folk art are not publicly exhibited and the artists are not given new opportunities to sell their work, then it is quite possible their work will not be passed on to the next generation. Feria Maestros del Arte brings you all of this:
Where
else can I see the work of the Maestros? This incredible art book was published by Fomento Cultural Banamex, a major Mexican bank now owned by Citicorp. Over a two-year period, communities all over Mexico were visited and a group of master artisans were selected representing all parts of the country. Now these works of art are also on display in US museums as well.
Map to Feria Maestros del Arte
For information contact Marianne Carlson at 011522 376 765 7485 or email mariannecarlson@gmail.com (Our
thanks to Norm Tibor, Teresa Kendrick, Jack Byzoza & Janet Hemmerle
for the use of their photographs) |
Although
Feria Maestros del Arte has grown and new volunteers are have been recruited
to help with the event, I still personally select the Mexican folk artists.
Some of the maestros are already well known in the US and even
Europe, however, their work is almost never seen at art exhibitions in
Mexico. I look for a blend of well-known artists to help give the show
credibility and attract buyers who have heard of their work, but my main
goal is to find artists whose work is not well known and who need a helping
hand getting their work into the art world.
First,
hours of research goes into locating maestros that produce the type of
folk art I am looking for. It has taken years to find certain artists
- nothing has been written about them in books or on the Internet. Then,
a conversation or a new contact will give me the information I need to
contact the artist. 
Hand-picked
master artists are found all over Mexico. Marianne does not just call
them on the telephone and ask them to attend the show - she travels to
their homes. Collectors and buyers are brought an astonishing variety
of exceptional folk art. Many of them are featured in the acclaimed book"Great
Masters of Mexican Folk Art" and have practiced their art for
generations; others are inspired artists yet to be discovered. All are
masters of their mediums: clay, paper, fabric, paint, wood, stone, silver,
alpaca, and other traditional materials. 
“Great
Masters of Mexican Folk Art” (Fomento Cultural
Banamex). This book is required reading for collectors and interested
devotees of Mexican folk art. The book honors the enduring tradition of
folk art by displaying more than 500 works of art by 181 of Mexico’s greatest
living folk artists, many of whom have already exhibited at Feria Maestros
del Arte.