Arts and Crafts of Mexico. With 213 illustrations, 160 in colour. Special photography by David Lavender 1990

Arts and Crafts of Mexico. With 213 illustrations, 160 in colour. Special photography by David Lavender 1990

illustrated covers

160 pp

good condition

Today, centuries after the Conquest by Spain, nearly sixty Indian peoples still live in Mexico. Many retain their own customs and craft traditions. Their diverse arts are an essential part of their culture-derived from a fusion of traditions, from the ancient Aztec and Maya civilizations and the era of Spanish and Moorish influence. Here is the essential companion for all those who have visited Mexico and purchased, or fallen in love with, local crafts. This book  with its wide range of colour photographs of collectables offers a vivid portrait of the Mexican people and their lifestyles. Also serving as a guide to potential visitors to Mexico, it will appeal above all to a Western audience excited by the decorative qualities of a folk art that has become widely available. Arts and Crafts of Mexico reveals the vigour of Mexican textile designs, perhaps unsurpassed elsewhere in the Americas; the huge variety of ceramics, from rustic pots to sophisticated maiolica ware; jewelry ranging from horses and alligators of beaten silver to simple necklaces of coloured seeds; charming and ingeniously inventive folk toys; ritual arts produced for celebration at fiestas and for divine protection; and a host of other crafts, including wood carving, basketry and metalwork. A reference section completes the book, providing detailed advice on collecting Mexican folk art, a Glossary, Bibliography and 'Peoples of Mexico' guide.