Alvin Starkman M.A., LL.B.
The rural mezcal producers of Oaxaca keep the tradition as pure as it was centuries ago. They pepper the villages and roadsides where tourists rarely venture. Their operations are a far cry from those of Benevá, Oro de Oaxaca, the brands of the Chagoya family, and the few designer labels vying with one another to corner the Manhattan sipping market.
Hilarino Olivera Cruz has a small fábrica de mezcal (mezcal “factory”) near his hometown village of San Lorenzo Albarradas, about an hour and a quarter drive from the city of Oaxaca, en route to Hierve el Agua. But he and his wife María Sara don’t just produce mezcal. They can’t afford to rely on distilling alone to eke out their modest, working class existence. Out of the same premises they operate a tiny restaurant, El Tigre, without the benefit of electricity, employing their daughter-in-law Alma; María Sara also has a door-to-door Avon-style sales business from which she earns perhaps $50 or $70 a month; Hilarino together with their eldest son Claudio, Alma’s husband, run a dump truck; and as is the custom with most craft-producing and other cottage industry families, they have their fields of milpa to tend, yielding corn for making tortillas, tamales and like products used to provide for personal consumption, and in the case of the Olivera family, also for restaurant use.
On the one hand hard working mezcaleros such as Hilarino are not permitted to export commercially, since they are not members of the regulatory body known as COMERCAM, yet on the other they struggle to maintain the artisanal, or pure, traditional hands-on nature of production, and resist the adulteration of their spirit through modern processing methods including the use of chemical additives … for everyone’s benefit.
You won’t find Hilarino flogging his mezcal in downtown Oaxaca with the aid of heavily made-up, attractive, smiling teenage girls offering free tastings. Nor will you encounter him when taking a Sunday tour bus to Mitla or Tlacolula, and sauntering up to a fine oak bar for samples of cremas (sweet, mezcal-based products), jovens (un-aged mezcal) or what’s represented to be five or ten-year-old añejos. The photo op that’s provided will appear quaint enough, but won’t come close to revealing the true history of the tradition, or the present reality of the struggle of the rural producer.
Hilarino’s market is not the tourist trade, but rather residents of Oaxaca, Mitla, the nearby Mixe region, and of course his own community. The same as it was for his great-grandparents: “I remember the stories my parents and grandparents would tell, about how it actually was way back then,” Hilarino reveals. “They were campesinos. They would harvest mainly wild agave known as tobalá. A caravan would set out, comprised of perhaps 10 or 15 mules or donkeys and an equal number of people helping out. Cousins, aunts and uncles would organize themselves and take the mezcal on what would be like a trade route, in pottery or metal receptacles, down into the valley and up throughout the mountains. Each animal would carry 3 containers, one on each side and another on top. My relatives would be gone for anywhere between a couple of days and two weeks, often returning home with 2 or 3 less mules … that’s how hard the journey was. Of course now it’s much easier.”
Easier is a relative term. Then it took two or three days to pulverize the baked agave prior to fermentation, hammering it with a wooden mallet made of tree burl. Now it’s crushed by a horse or mule reluctantly pulling a multi-ton limestone wheel over it for a couple of hours, persuaded with the assistance of a crop-like piece of leather, or simply a stick … and then it’s time for the next batch.
Hilarino began learning how to make mezcal when he was about seven years old. Out of economic necessity he moved with his family to Mexico City at age 11, and remained there for the next 15 years. Upon return to Oaxaca some 14 years ago he built and opened his current facility, the mezcal operation with adjoining eatery. Initially his father worked the business with him, but about four years ago the elder Olivera opened up his own restaurant beside his son’s, and since then they’ve been competitors of sorts. Hilarino explains: “But my father can’t produce mezcal on his own, since I’m the one with the equipment (clay and brick still with copper attachments, pine fermenting vats, limestone wheel and ring for crushing, and beast of burden), so when he has a batch of agave he wants to process, we work out an arrangement for him to use my production facility.” In fact one of Hilarino’s brothers does the same thing, buying agave and renting Hilarino’s premises to produce, and then selling to his own customers. Occasionally others from the village make similar arrangements with him.
Hilarino distills roughly 500 liters of mezcal a month. His average sale is about 5 liters. He owns a few different pieces of land upon which he has 5,000 plants, with exclusively the espadín variety of agave under cultivation. At least 90% of the mezcal produced in the state is espadín, the rest comprising mainly wild varieties.
The agave on Hilarino’s fields is sufficient to service his regular trade. But occasionally an out-of-state client will request a large quantity of mezcal, perhaps 800 – 1,000 liters. “When this happens,” he confesses, “I have to go out and buy mature plants from a neighbor, since I simply can’t harvest my agave whenever a special order comes in. I have to wait those 8 – 10 years until the plants in a particular field are ready to be harvested.” But the finished product maintains its quality and character, since Hilarino remains the producer, using his own equipment and particular recipe, and the agave, albeit not from his own fields, comes from the same San Lorenzo Albarradas micro-climate.
It’s such cooperation between local producers, together with a united voice, which is required to ensure that small-scale, traditional production of quality mezcal continues. To this end Hilarino has recently joined the ninety-member association, Fabricantes y Expendedores del Tradicional Mezcal Oaxaqueño A.C.. Its function, at least in the estimation of Hilarino, is to maintain the artisanal nature of the industry; resist the move towards increased industrialization and the ability of large producers to label any spirit produced with or containing additives, as mezcal; and provide small producers with an opportunity to have their products exposed to and promoted in a wider marketplace.
But the reality is that the big producers and exporters of mezcal in Oaxaca need the mom and pop operations much more so than the latter need the former. Why? Because the little guy will always continue to survive by selling his mezcal in his local market, using the centuries old production technique, while the exporter relies on that age old tradition for his marketing … and it’s kept alive not through his 21st century innovations and “improvements” to productions methods, but rather by the Hilarinos in the state.
Alvin Starkman received his Masters in Social Anthropology in 1978. After teaching for a few years he attended Osgoode Hall Law School, thereafter embarking upon a career as a litigator until 2004. Alvin resides in Oaxaca, where he writes, leads personalized tours to the villages, markets, ruins and other sights (including into the mountains for mezcal tastings and learning about traditional production methods) , and operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast. ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ), combining the comfort and service of a Oaxaca hotel with the lodging style of a quaint country inn .
8/28/2008
8/15/2008
El Tigre: restaurant in Oaxaca is as authentic as they get
Alvin Starkman M.A., LL.B.
It’ll cost María Sara and her husband Hilarino about $7,000 USD to get electricity for their tiny, roadside eatery, located about an hour outside of the City of Oaxaca. It’s feasible only if they can get some of their neighbors to chip in. But that would detract from the allure of their restaurant: fresh meats delivered to the premises daily and kept cool in an insulated box; hours of operation governed by nature; no stove or oven, nor subtle din of an electric fridge; and no TV revisiting Mexico’s last soccer triumph.
El Tigre is about the last vestige of Old Mexico you’ll encounter on a visit to Oaxaca, while at the same time as comfortable, accommodating, and safe for North American gastrointestinal tracts as you’ll find in the finest white linen restaurants in the downtown core. Sure, the wood-burning hearth over which all of their daily offerings are prepared, produces distracting smoke from time to time. And it’s doubtful that the blocks of ice cooling the Coke, Fanta and Corona will keep the beverages as cold as most are accustomed. But save and except for these shortcomings, if you’re heading to Mitla, or out towards Hierve el Agua, a visit to El Tigre is not to be missed.
You’ll be warmly greeted by María Sara and her daughter-in-law Alma. Conceivably Hilarino will be there as well. He runs the mezcal operation alongside the restaurant, the implication being that if you order mezcal, it’s on the house.
But you’re stopping for the food and the open air ambience and basically nothing more. There’s no menu, so you’d better either have a minimal knowledge of Spanish, or read on and take notes. Each morning María cooks up a different stew, be it beef in green sauce, pork in red, or something similar. Otherwise the standard choices available every day are quite simple: grilled chorizo (Oaxacan sausage); a plate of cecina (sliced pork lightly dusted with chili); tasajo (thinly sliced beef); eggs, either scrambled alone or with chorizo, or fried; quesadillas; and memelitas. María is used to this writer bringing by North American tourists, who have often commented that it was the best meal they’ve had in Oaxaca. You can ask for anything to be cooked on the comal, over open flame, sans lard, oil or butter.
The accompaniments are sliced tomato and onion (disinfected), boiled black beans, and freshly made salsa with garlic, chili, tomato, and little more, served hot off the grill in its molcajete, the pestle and mortar used in preparation. You’ll generally see a pot of simmering corn kernels being softened and readied for the next day’s grinding into a masa for making tortillas. And yes, of course the tortillas, made with hand-ground cornmeal and prepared on the comal before your eyes complement every order.
Since 1994 El Tigre has been serving the surrounding communities, the odd visitor en route to and from to Hierve el Agua, and those in transit between Oaxaca and the district known as the Mixe. The main attraction for many Mexicans is the mezcal produced on site by Hilarino, using the age old traditional techniques of his grandparents and their forebears. But for those who yearn for a taste of down-to-earth, unadulterated southern Mexico, El Tigre is a must --- uniquely Oaxacan, and as fresh and flavorful as you can get.
El Tigre is open 7 days from morning until 7 pm, Sundays until 2. It’s along highway 190, perhaps a 15 minute drive beyond Mitla, on the left hand side about a half mile before you get to the San Lorenzo Albarradas cutoff which takes you to the bubbling springs.
Alvin Starkman has a masters in anthropology and law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School. Now a resident of Oaxaca, Alvin writes, takes tours to the sights, and owns Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ), a unique Oaxaca bed and breakfast experience which combines the comfort and service of a large downtown Oaxaca hotel, with the personal touch and quaintness of a country inn. Alvin consistently receives cudos from his touring clients after a visit to El Tigre.
It’ll cost María Sara and her husband Hilarino about $7,000 USD to get electricity for their tiny, roadside eatery, located about an hour outside of the City of Oaxaca. It’s feasible only if they can get some of their neighbors to chip in. But that would detract from the allure of their restaurant: fresh meats delivered to the premises daily and kept cool in an insulated box; hours of operation governed by nature; no stove or oven, nor subtle din of an electric fridge; and no TV revisiting Mexico’s last soccer triumph.
El Tigre is about the last vestige of Old Mexico you’ll encounter on a visit to Oaxaca, while at the same time as comfortable, accommodating, and safe for North American gastrointestinal tracts as you’ll find in the finest white linen restaurants in the downtown core. Sure, the wood-burning hearth over which all of their daily offerings are prepared, produces distracting smoke from time to time. And it’s doubtful that the blocks of ice cooling the Coke, Fanta and Corona will keep the beverages as cold as most are accustomed. But save and except for these shortcomings, if you’re heading to Mitla, or out towards Hierve el Agua, a visit to El Tigre is not to be missed.
You’ll be warmly greeted by María Sara and her daughter-in-law Alma. Conceivably Hilarino will be there as well. He runs the mezcal operation alongside the restaurant, the implication being that if you order mezcal, it’s on the house.
But you’re stopping for the food and the open air ambience and basically nothing more. There’s no menu, so you’d better either have a minimal knowledge of Spanish, or read on and take notes. Each morning María cooks up a different stew, be it beef in green sauce, pork in red, or something similar. Otherwise the standard choices available every day are quite simple: grilled chorizo (Oaxacan sausage); a plate of cecina (sliced pork lightly dusted with chili); tasajo (thinly sliced beef); eggs, either scrambled alone or with chorizo, or fried; quesadillas; and memelitas. María is used to this writer bringing by North American tourists, who have often commented that it was the best meal they’ve had in Oaxaca. You can ask for anything to be cooked on the comal, over open flame, sans lard, oil or butter.
The accompaniments are sliced tomato and onion (disinfected), boiled black beans, and freshly made salsa with garlic, chili, tomato, and little more, served hot off the grill in its molcajete, the pestle and mortar used in preparation. You’ll generally see a pot of simmering corn kernels being softened and readied for the next day’s grinding into a masa for making tortillas. And yes, of course the tortillas, made with hand-ground cornmeal and prepared on the comal before your eyes complement every order.
Since 1994 El Tigre has been serving the surrounding communities, the odd visitor en route to and from to Hierve el Agua, and those in transit between Oaxaca and the district known as the Mixe. The main attraction for many Mexicans is the mezcal produced on site by Hilarino, using the age old traditional techniques of his grandparents and their forebears. But for those who yearn for a taste of down-to-earth, unadulterated southern Mexico, El Tigre is a must --- uniquely Oaxacan, and as fresh and flavorful as you can get.
El Tigre is open 7 days from morning until 7 pm, Sundays until 2. It’s along highway 190, perhaps a 15 minute drive beyond Mitla, on the left hand side about a half mile before you get to the San Lorenzo Albarradas cutoff which takes you to the bubbling springs.
Alvin Starkman has a masters in anthropology and law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School. Now a resident of Oaxaca, Alvin writes, takes tours to the sights, and owns Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ), a unique Oaxaca bed and breakfast experience which combines the comfort and service of a large downtown Oaxaca hotel, with the personal touch and quaintness of a country inn. Alvin consistently receives cudos from his touring clients after a visit to El Tigre.
8/13/2008
The Allure of Oaxaca, Mexico, for Snowbirds
THE ALLURE OF OAXACA, MEXICO, FOR SNOWBIRDS
Alvin Starkman M.A., LL.B.
Oaxaca has two main advantages over other southern destinations for snowbirds. First, you can explore one of the most culturally rich regions in Latin America, and then if the mood strikes, hop a plane, and in 35 minutes be relaxing on a sandy beach sipping margaritas. Second, there is enough of an expat presence in the city to enable a vacationer to spend part of the time with other Anglophones if inclined, and the balance with native Mexicans.
Oaxaca (wah – HAW – kah) is one of Mexico’s southernmost states. Its capital, the city of Oaxaca, has a population upwards of 400,000, brimming with Old World charm. A UNESCO world heritage site, the city and central valleys are filled with pre-Hispanic ruins, 16th century churches, colorful market towns and craft villages, art galleries and museums, and renowned cuisine. In 2006 Oaxaca was named one of the ten most important travel destinations, worldwide.
Begin a visit by spending the first couple of days downtown, wandering the zócalo, the city’s central square, lined with outdoor cafés and balconied restaurants. There you’ll soak up the live music of mariachis, marimbas and Latin dance bands. From the street vendors you’ll preview the array of local crafts you’ll have an opportunity to purchase in the villages. Marvel at the exquisite colonial architecture, centuries old artistic wrought ironwork, and green limestone block construction.
Be sure to walk up Garcia Vigil street to Los Arquitos, the 18th century aqueduct where you’ll encounter quaint restaurants, dwellings, and a weekend organic market. Down the street drop by the home where the first indigenous president of Mexico, Oaxaca’s own Benito Juarez lived. During his rule, Juarez succeeded in separating church and state, the ultimate marker being his declaration that all church marriages were invalid.
The Cathedral at the north end of the zócalo, La Soledad a few blocks west, and Santa Domingo a short walk up the city’s main pedestrian walkway, are the three must-see Dominican churches, in their grandeur and refurbished glory. The Santa Domingo Cultural Centre adjoining the church has impressive displays covering various historical periods, well laid out in several halls. The ethno-botanical gardens behind the complex, showcasing cactus, succulents and trees all native to the region, offers an English tour three times weekly. The Rufino Tamayo Museum of Pre-Hispanic Art is the other major museum for both archaeology aficionados and those with an eye for early aesthetics. It represents the collection donated by Tamayo, a grand master of Mexican art and one of the state’s native sons.
Oaxaca boasts over 50 galleries and artist studios, representing the fruits of a rich, longstanding tradition. One can easily spend an entire vacation exploring the artistic community. Not a week seems to go by when there is not a new opening, a benefit auction, or an opportunity to stop and chat with an impressive young artist and perhaps get invited to his workshop for a peek at his latest yet unfinished works. About a half hour’s drive outside of the city you’ll be awe-struck by the San Agustín Center for The Arts, with rotating displays, housed in a magestic 19th century textile mill. Then tour the nearby hand-made paper factory. Both are located in a lush, panoramic rural setting, the brainchild of contemporary Oaxacan artist and philanthropist Francisco Toledo.
The state’s 16 distinct ancestral cultures, maintained through innumerable colorful fiestas throughout the year, have contributed to a broad diversity of gastronomic traditions, highlighted by unique ingredient combinations and distinctly flavored dishes. The most well-known of the seven moles --- rich and unusually flavored sauces --- is mole negro which combines tomato, a variety of chilis, and chocolate. Other regional plates include a dozen varieties of both sweet and zesty tamales; the tlayuda (an oversized crispy tortilla topped with refried beans, lettuce, tomato, cheese and a selection of beef, pork or sausage); the parrillada (a medley of grilled cheeses, meats and vegetables brought to the table in a sizzling hibachi ); and barbacoa (goat or sheep cooked in an in-ground oven). Then of course there’s Oaxaca’s more exotic fare, seasoned fried grasshoppers, a typical snack, and gusano worm, used to make salsas and as a chaser for spirits.
With such culinary greatness it’s no surprise that a number of cooking schools have sprung up over the last couple of decades. Novice cooks, seasoned chefs and restauranteurs from around the globe converge on the city to take classes. Internationally acclaimed Oaxacan chef Pilar Cabrera believes it’s important for students to get into the local marketplace where fresh ingredients are purchased, as part of the learning experience: “I first take my class to the market, where Oaxacans have traditionally bought their ingredients, to teach about the characteristics and variety of foodstuffs, substitutes for produce hard to find back home, and simply as a part of a full immersion cultural experience.” Ms. Cabrera offers private, semi-private and group lessons, as well as full-week intensive courses.
For your initial visit to the city, try to incorporate a Sunday. While most days of the week have rural town marketplaces, Sunday at Tlacolula is by far the best example of a bustling indigenous market with pageantry not to be missed. En route, the 2,000 year old cypress at Santa María el Tule, is worth a stop. It’s purportedly the world’s largest tree. Then enter the rug town of Teotitlán del Valle, and visit the home and workshop of Porfirio Santiago. Porfirio, together with wife Gloria and family, explain the manufacturing process, religiously followed in the village since 1535, starting with carding of raw wool, spinning, coloring using natural dyes from fruit, nuts, mosses, the añil plant (brilliant indigo), and the cochineal insect, and finally weaving intricate Zapotec designs on locally produced pine looms.
The Zapotecs have been one of the state’s pre-dominant cultures for over 2,000 years, and in many towns and villages remain a strong presence today, with native tongue still spoken. One of the vestiges of Zapotec society is the ruin at Mitla, encountered along the same route. Mitla is unique because of its multi-ton limestone lintels, estimated 100,000 hand carved stones used to form friezes in various geometric designs, the remains of pictographs which tell family genealogies, and its tombs. Mitla is second only to the most noted ruin in the state, Monte Albán, a 15 minute drive from Oaxaca.
On another day, head out from the city in a different direction, starting with a visit to the black pottery village of San Bartolo Coyotepec. At the workshop of Doña Rosa you’ll have an opportunity to learn from her son, Don Valente, who has been making pottery without a wheel and using only rudimentary tools produced in the village, for 70 years. Then at San Martín Tilcajete you’ll have an opportunity to see demonstrations of a pre-Hispanic woodcarving tradition. The families in this village carve fanciful animals and paint them with the most vibrant of colors. The workshop of Jacobo and María Ángeles is noteworthy for the quality of carving and use of natural paints made from tree bark and sap, pomegranate, honey, berries, leaves and other substances produced by mother earth.
You can easily spend a full day down the road in Ocotlán. Aside from its Friday market, visit the workshops of the Aguilar sisters who make painted clay figures depicting townspeople in their regional dress, market scenes, biblical stories and amusing sexual images. Their cousin, Apolinar Aguilar, hand-forges knives and cutlery utilizing the 16th century Toledo, Spain technique. He works with only recycled metals and other materials, using a stone and clay hearth. His workshop was enlisted to make the swords used in the 1980s feature film Conan the Barbarian. In the centre of town you’ll have an opportunity to learn about another late great master of Mexican art, Rodolfo Morales. His works are on display in the town museum, and at his Foundation located in his family’s typical courtyard style colonial home. The most impressive example of his work is the large fresco mural which can be viewed in a government building at one end of the square.
There are several more sights you can visit along each of these and other routes. For example, consider the church and monastery at Cuilapam; the cotton textile village at Santo Tomás Jalieza where women weave using a back strap loom; a series of 16th century churches found along what’s known as the Domincan Route; numerous other ruins representing the remains of diverse cultures spanding millenia; cave paintings; petrified waterfalls and bubbling natural springs in an exquisite mountain setting at Hierve el Agua; and mezcal factories where you can witness the centuries old method of producing the spirit. The agave plant is baked in a pit and then pulverizing using a mule dragging a limestone wheel over it, in preparation for fermentation. A wood-burning still is utilized in the final phase of production. Once you get out of the central valleys, up into the mountains and then down into the tropical regions leading to both the Pacific and Caribbean, the variety of native crafts and traditions, marvels of nature and other sights become endless.
While cultural attractions are clearly a major draw to the region, the state is not without sand and surf. The Pacific beach resort towns of Huatulco and Puerto Escondido are a short flight or a very scenic drive from the state capital, enabling vacationers to split their holiday time between two distinctly different experiences.
After an initial tour of the capital, consider more extended visits as part of a retirement plan. Contact with other Canadians and Americans is easily facilitated through the English language library, one of the largest in the country. Through it one can meet other expats in a relaxed and welcoming environment, and become part of the various outreach programs, card and other game groups, monthly dinner get-togethers, the garden club, frequent excursions, and much more. However, since expats reside throughout the various neighborhoods and close-by villages, and not in any select community or development, those with winter residency in Oaxaca are readily accepted as part of the broader Oaxacan community.
The allure of Oaxaca is much more than the year round warm climate, modest cost of living and broad range of available activities … it’s the welcoming nature of its people.
Alvin Starkman received his Masters in Social Anthropology from York University in 1978. After teaching for a few years he attended Osgoode Hall Law School, thereafter embarking upon a successful career as a litigator until 2004. Alvin now resides in Oaxaca, where he writes, leads personalized tours to the villages, markets, ruins and other sights, is a documentary film consultant, and operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ) .
Alvin Starkman M.A., LL.B.
Oaxaca has two main advantages over other southern destinations for snowbirds. First, you can explore one of the most culturally rich regions in Latin America, and then if the mood strikes, hop a plane, and in 35 minutes be relaxing on a sandy beach sipping margaritas. Second, there is enough of an expat presence in the city to enable a vacationer to spend part of the time with other Anglophones if inclined, and the balance with native Mexicans.
Oaxaca (wah – HAW – kah) is one of Mexico’s southernmost states. Its capital, the city of Oaxaca, has a population upwards of 400,000, brimming with Old World charm. A UNESCO world heritage site, the city and central valleys are filled with pre-Hispanic ruins, 16th century churches, colorful market towns and craft villages, art galleries and museums, and renowned cuisine. In 2006 Oaxaca was named one of the ten most important travel destinations, worldwide.
Begin a visit by spending the first couple of days downtown, wandering the zócalo, the city’s central square, lined with outdoor cafés and balconied restaurants. There you’ll soak up the live music of mariachis, marimbas and Latin dance bands. From the street vendors you’ll preview the array of local crafts you’ll have an opportunity to purchase in the villages. Marvel at the exquisite colonial architecture, centuries old artistic wrought ironwork, and green limestone block construction.
Be sure to walk up Garcia Vigil street to Los Arquitos, the 18th century aqueduct where you’ll encounter quaint restaurants, dwellings, and a weekend organic market. Down the street drop by the home where the first indigenous president of Mexico, Oaxaca’s own Benito Juarez lived. During his rule, Juarez succeeded in separating church and state, the ultimate marker being his declaration that all church marriages were invalid.
The Cathedral at the north end of the zócalo, La Soledad a few blocks west, and Santa Domingo a short walk up the city’s main pedestrian walkway, are the three must-see Dominican churches, in their grandeur and refurbished glory. The Santa Domingo Cultural Centre adjoining the church has impressive displays covering various historical periods, well laid out in several halls. The ethno-botanical gardens behind the complex, showcasing cactus, succulents and trees all native to the region, offers an English tour three times weekly. The Rufino Tamayo Museum of Pre-Hispanic Art is the other major museum for both archaeology aficionados and those with an eye for early aesthetics. It represents the collection donated by Tamayo, a grand master of Mexican art and one of the state’s native sons.
Oaxaca boasts over 50 galleries and artist studios, representing the fruits of a rich, longstanding tradition. One can easily spend an entire vacation exploring the artistic community. Not a week seems to go by when there is not a new opening, a benefit auction, or an opportunity to stop and chat with an impressive young artist and perhaps get invited to his workshop for a peek at his latest yet unfinished works. About a half hour’s drive outside of the city you’ll be awe-struck by the San Agustín Center for The Arts, with rotating displays, housed in a magestic 19th century textile mill. Then tour the nearby hand-made paper factory. Both are located in a lush, panoramic rural setting, the brainchild of contemporary Oaxacan artist and philanthropist Francisco Toledo.
The state’s 16 distinct ancestral cultures, maintained through innumerable colorful fiestas throughout the year, have contributed to a broad diversity of gastronomic traditions, highlighted by unique ingredient combinations and distinctly flavored dishes. The most well-known of the seven moles --- rich and unusually flavored sauces --- is mole negro which combines tomato, a variety of chilis, and chocolate. Other regional plates include a dozen varieties of both sweet and zesty tamales; the tlayuda (an oversized crispy tortilla topped with refried beans, lettuce, tomato, cheese and a selection of beef, pork or sausage); the parrillada (a medley of grilled cheeses, meats and vegetables brought to the table in a sizzling hibachi ); and barbacoa (goat or sheep cooked in an in-ground oven). Then of course there’s Oaxaca’s more exotic fare, seasoned fried grasshoppers, a typical snack, and gusano worm, used to make salsas and as a chaser for spirits.
With such culinary greatness it’s no surprise that a number of cooking schools have sprung up over the last couple of decades. Novice cooks, seasoned chefs and restauranteurs from around the globe converge on the city to take classes. Internationally acclaimed Oaxacan chef Pilar Cabrera believes it’s important for students to get into the local marketplace where fresh ingredients are purchased, as part of the learning experience: “I first take my class to the market, where Oaxacans have traditionally bought their ingredients, to teach about the characteristics and variety of foodstuffs, substitutes for produce hard to find back home, and simply as a part of a full immersion cultural experience.” Ms. Cabrera offers private, semi-private and group lessons, as well as full-week intensive courses.
For your initial visit to the city, try to incorporate a Sunday. While most days of the week have rural town marketplaces, Sunday at Tlacolula is by far the best example of a bustling indigenous market with pageantry not to be missed. En route, the 2,000 year old cypress at Santa María el Tule, is worth a stop. It’s purportedly the world’s largest tree. Then enter the rug town of Teotitlán del Valle, and visit the home and workshop of Porfirio Santiago. Porfirio, together with wife Gloria and family, explain the manufacturing process, religiously followed in the village since 1535, starting with carding of raw wool, spinning, coloring using natural dyes from fruit, nuts, mosses, the añil plant (brilliant indigo), and the cochineal insect, and finally weaving intricate Zapotec designs on locally produced pine looms.
The Zapotecs have been one of the state’s pre-dominant cultures for over 2,000 years, and in many towns and villages remain a strong presence today, with native tongue still spoken. One of the vestiges of Zapotec society is the ruin at Mitla, encountered along the same route. Mitla is unique because of its multi-ton limestone lintels, estimated 100,000 hand carved stones used to form friezes in various geometric designs, the remains of pictographs which tell family genealogies, and its tombs. Mitla is second only to the most noted ruin in the state, Monte Albán, a 15 minute drive from Oaxaca.
On another day, head out from the city in a different direction, starting with a visit to the black pottery village of San Bartolo Coyotepec. At the workshop of Doña Rosa you’ll have an opportunity to learn from her son, Don Valente, who has been making pottery without a wheel and using only rudimentary tools produced in the village, for 70 years. Then at San Martín Tilcajete you’ll have an opportunity to see demonstrations of a pre-Hispanic woodcarving tradition. The families in this village carve fanciful animals and paint them with the most vibrant of colors. The workshop of Jacobo and María Ángeles is noteworthy for the quality of carving and use of natural paints made from tree bark and sap, pomegranate, honey, berries, leaves and other substances produced by mother earth.
You can easily spend a full day down the road in Ocotlán. Aside from its Friday market, visit the workshops of the Aguilar sisters who make painted clay figures depicting townspeople in their regional dress, market scenes, biblical stories and amusing sexual images. Their cousin, Apolinar Aguilar, hand-forges knives and cutlery utilizing the 16th century Toledo, Spain technique. He works with only recycled metals and other materials, using a stone and clay hearth. His workshop was enlisted to make the swords used in the 1980s feature film Conan the Barbarian. In the centre of town you’ll have an opportunity to learn about another late great master of Mexican art, Rodolfo Morales. His works are on display in the town museum, and at his Foundation located in his family’s typical courtyard style colonial home. The most impressive example of his work is the large fresco mural which can be viewed in a government building at one end of the square.
There are several more sights you can visit along each of these and other routes. For example, consider the church and monastery at Cuilapam; the cotton textile village at Santo Tomás Jalieza where women weave using a back strap loom; a series of 16th century churches found along what’s known as the Domincan Route; numerous other ruins representing the remains of diverse cultures spanding millenia; cave paintings; petrified waterfalls and bubbling natural springs in an exquisite mountain setting at Hierve el Agua; and mezcal factories where you can witness the centuries old method of producing the spirit. The agave plant is baked in a pit and then pulverizing using a mule dragging a limestone wheel over it, in preparation for fermentation. A wood-burning still is utilized in the final phase of production. Once you get out of the central valleys, up into the mountains and then down into the tropical regions leading to both the Pacific and Caribbean, the variety of native crafts and traditions, marvels of nature and other sights become endless.
While cultural attractions are clearly a major draw to the region, the state is not without sand and surf. The Pacific beach resort towns of Huatulco and Puerto Escondido are a short flight or a very scenic drive from the state capital, enabling vacationers to split their holiday time between two distinctly different experiences.
After an initial tour of the capital, consider more extended visits as part of a retirement plan. Contact with other Canadians and Americans is easily facilitated through the English language library, one of the largest in the country. Through it one can meet other expats in a relaxed and welcoming environment, and become part of the various outreach programs, card and other game groups, monthly dinner get-togethers, the garden club, frequent excursions, and much more. However, since expats reside throughout the various neighborhoods and close-by villages, and not in any select community or development, those with winter residency in Oaxaca are readily accepted as part of the broader Oaxacan community.
The allure of Oaxaca is much more than the year round warm climate, modest cost of living and broad range of available activities … it’s the welcoming nature of its people.
Alvin Starkman received his Masters in Social Anthropology from York University in 1978. After teaching for a few years he attended Osgoode Hall Law School, thereafter embarking upon a successful career as a litigator until 2004. Alvin now resides in Oaxaca, where he writes, leads personalized tours to the villages, markets, ruins and other sights, is a documentary film consultant, and operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ) .
8/10/2008
Manuel Reyes: sculptor, painter and renaissance man from the Mixteca Alta, Oaxaca
Alvin Starkman, M.A. LL.B.
Artist Manuel Reyes aspires to exhibit his work in art galleries in Oaxaca and Mexico City. Give him that exposure over the next couple of years, and there’s little doubt his genius will be known in New York, Chicago, and further abroad. American, Canadian and European art collectors are already tapping their Mexican networks to figure out how to make their way to his modest home and workshop in the village of Yanhuitlan, an hour and a half outside of the city of Oaxaca, to marvel at his artistry … and buy it up.
Reyes was born in Mexico City (d.o.b. 20/12/72) to Oaxacan parents. He balks at any suggestion that he is not pure Oaxacan: “My parents are from the Mixteca Alta, right in this region of the state, and I’ve always considered myself a Oaxacan. That’s my heritage, my birthright. I just happen to have been born out of state. While I’ve had training from some of the grand masters of Mexican art, I’ve developed a large part of my artistic style from watching and speaking to local artists right here in the Mixteca.”
Reyes began studying art in 1990. He attended the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas in Xochimilco, Mexico City. He moved to Cuernavaca in 1995, where he was mentored by the likes of Roger Von Gunten, Joy Laville, Francisco Lastra and Juan Soriano. He studied predominantly seriography, sculpture and painting. In 2003 Reyes returned to the Mixteca, and has since then re-established his roots. “The lessons I learned through my formal training have been invaluable, but I gain inspiration and have adopted techniques not solely from my maestros, to whom I owe a great deal, but also from the artists and craftspeople of the Oaxacan district of Nochixtlán.”
Reyes works together with his wife Maricela, a gifted artist in her own right. In fact their six-year-old daughter Natalia does ceramics with her mother, and painting with Manuel. “Some of our pieces are not only inspired by Natalia, but she actually participates in their creation. Look at this oil mixed with sand on canvas, with its fanciful and childlike figures. Natalia actually began the piece, and I just brought to fruition what was in her mind and she had already begun to put to paper.”
“My main influences are Rufino Tamayo for my painting, and Maribel Portela for my sculpture,” he continues. “But what I’ve learned from the people of my culture has been invaluable to my work … the use of a wood-burning kiln made of mud and brick, about the different kinds of clays for sculpting --- many of which are available in Oaxaca --- and how to mix different kinds of soils to create a broad range of paint colors and tones, and textures. In the end my pieces are products of my local environment, or at times made from materials I’ve sourced from other parts of the country.”
While Reyes obtains his clays from many different areas, most are from four main locales: a riverbed about a kilometer from his home, upstate at Huajuapan de León, the town of Santa María Cuquila, and from Zacatecas, northwest of the nation’s capital. Each compound has different qualities. His Zacatecan clay is strong and has a sandy texture, making it suitable for sculpting his large, almost life-size human figures; more utilitarian pieces such as plates and cups are made with earth from Cuquila; pieces which he intends to burnish are sculpted from clay from Huajuapan de León; and he mixes local soil with the Zacatecan earth to yield a more malleable and easily workable clay.
For colors, Reyes often looks to other parts of the nation so as to enable him to obtain the variety he needs. “That painting hanging in our kitchen provides a good example of the range of colors I derive from combining different earths. Many of my paints come from the environment. I brought a kilo of clay from Chihuahua and used it to make paint for that male figure looking skyward. That white is an oxide.” Indeed the breadth of colors he is able to create for use on both his sculptures and his paintings is remarkable.
Manuel’s canvases are generally “mixed technique” as he refers to them, a combination of oil, acrylic and natural earth. Depending on the inspiration for a particular work, and the imagery he seeks to convey, the order and manner of application and the texture and origin of the soil applied, will vary.
Reyes goes on to explain the sexual imagery captured in many pieces from his current crop of sculptures: “I’ve been doing a fair number with nude males since 2005, not initially by specific design, but rather because that’s what is often depicted in pre-Hispanic art and representations of day-to-day activities, and that’s the kind of work that I’ve enjoyed doing over the past three years. When you look at the earliest Zapotec clay figures, and in fact those dating to Olmec and earlier times, that’s what my ancestors were creating. A number of sculptures portray hope and prayer as well, so much a part of ancient times, with head looking upward to the heavens and hands raised.” When questioned about the over-representation in his figures of males with dangling phalluses, Reyes points to a couple of female pieces: “Look at that female warrior over there. But notice the belt I made for her, with penises hanging from it, her trophies.”
Reyes readily acknowledges that this is still a business, his livelihood, and when gay male collectors began taking an interest in this phase of his artistic development, it motivated him to continue with it and further experiment with the theme of male sexuality as depicted in the codices and sculptures of earlier civilizations.
But Manuel’s work also reflects his personal interests and passions, his reverence for Oaxaca’s present day rich cultural traditions, and his eclecticism whereby he’s prepared to push the outer boundary of what’s traditionally considered art, at times combining aestheticism with pure functionality: “I know a really good carpenter here in Yanhuitlan, and thought of combining our two trades, sort of as a fun project. I asked him to make me a cabinet with shelves and doors. I painted it and then put six mask tiles, each with a fair bit of relief, on the door panels. It came out really funky and a collector bought it within a couple of weeks of when I’d finished it.
Reyes has begun experimenting with masks as an art form. Their use at fiestas and for parades is common practice in Oaxaca, the tradition dating back perhaps 3,000 years, when permanent settlements were first established in the region. He pays tribute to the ritualistic use of masks with one of his sculptures, a marcher holding a mask in front of his face, still a common sight at Oaxacan celebrations today.
On a recent visit to Reyes’ home, the music of Lou Reed was playing. Rock, blues and other genres of the 60’s and 70’s are included in this extraordinary man’s list of delights. And of course, they are reflected in his work. He’s created clay painted figures of John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison, simply as a way of paying homage to some of his rock idols. Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven was the inspiration for one of his more “traditional” sculptures, with four men each climbing up a rung of a ladder made of reinforced steel covered with twine, each step framed by horn-shaped clouds.
More recently Reyes has become interested in depicting vestiges of the material culture of his indigenous forebears, combining his gift as a skilled artist with the work of an applied archaeologist. For example he recently found a potsherd with a painted design, and through extrapolation has created an entire, accurately crafted three-footed vessel.
Through his art, Manuel Reyes is continually looking for new modes of self-expression, while at the same time reflecting on diverse cultures, both present-day and of the near and distant past. He’s a true renaissance man whose golden touch will undoubtedly, over time, become appreciated by an increased following. The exhibitions of his work in Huajuapan de León and at the Museo del Arte Popular in San Bartolo Coyotepec where one piece remains on permanent display, pale compared to what’s in store for Manuel … and art aficionados around the globe.
Alvin Starkman received his Masters in Social Anthropology in 1978. After teaching for a few years he attended Osgoode Hall Law School, thereafter embarking upon a successful career as a litigator until 2004. Alvin, while still a good-standing member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, now resides with his wife Arlene in Oaxaca, where he writes, leads small group tours to the villages, markets, ruins and other sights, is a consultant to documentary film companies, and operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ), providing the comfort and service of lodging in a Oaxaca hotel, with the personal touch of a quaint country inn.
Artist Manuel Reyes aspires to exhibit his work in art galleries in Oaxaca and Mexico City. Give him that exposure over the next couple of years, and there’s little doubt his genius will be known in New York, Chicago, and further abroad. American, Canadian and European art collectors are already tapping their Mexican networks to figure out how to make their way to his modest home and workshop in the village of Yanhuitlan, an hour and a half outside of the city of Oaxaca, to marvel at his artistry … and buy it up.
Reyes was born in Mexico City (d.o.b. 20/12/72) to Oaxacan parents. He balks at any suggestion that he is not pure Oaxacan: “My parents are from the Mixteca Alta, right in this region of the state, and I’ve always considered myself a Oaxacan. That’s my heritage, my birthright. I just happen to have been born out of state. While I’ve had training from some of the grand masters of Mexican art, I’ve developed a large part of my artistic style from watching and speaking to local artists right here in the Mixteca.”
Reyes began studying art in 1990. He attended the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas in Xochimilco, Mexico City. He moved to Cuernavaca in 1995, where he was mentored by the likes of Roger Von Gunten, Joy Laville, Francisco Lastra and Juan Soriano. He studied predominantly seriography, sculpture and painting. In 2003 Reyes returned to the Mixteca, and has since then re-established his roots. “The lessons I learned through my formal training have been invaluable, but I gain inspiration and have adopted techniques not solely from my maestros, to whom I owe a great deal, but also from the artists and craftspeople of the Oaxacan district of Nochixtlán.”
Reyes works together with his wife Maricela, a gifted artist in her own right. In fact their six-year-old daughter Natalia does ceramics with her mother, and painting with Manuel. “Some of our pieces are not only inspired by Natalia, but she actually participates in their creation. Look at this oil mixed with sand on canvas, with its fanciful and childlike figures. Natalia actually began the piece, and I just brought to fruition what was in her mind and she had already begun to put to paper.”
“My main influences are Rufino Tamayo for my painting, and Maribel Portela for my sculpture,” he continues. “But what I’ve learned from the people of my culture has been invaluable to my work … the use of a wood-burning kiln made of mud and brick, about the different kinds of clays for sculpting --- many of which are available in Oaxaca --- and how to mix different kinds of soils to create a broad range of paint colors and tones, and textures. In the end my pieces are products of my local environment, or at times made from materials I’ve sourced from other parts of the country.”
While Reyes obtains his clays from many different areas, most are from four main locales: a riverbed about a kilometer from his home, upstate at Huajuapan de León, the town of Santa María Cuquila, and from Zacatecas, northwest of the nation’s capital. Each compound has different qualities. His Zacatecan clay is strong and has a sandy texture, making it suitable for sculpting his large, almost life-size human figures; more utilitarian pieces such as plates and cups are made with earth from Cuquila; pieces which he intends to burnish are sculpted from clay from Huajuapan de León; and he mixes local soil with the Zacatecan earth to yield a more malleable and easily workable clay.
For colors, Reyes often looks to other parts of the nation so as to enable him to obtain the variety he needs. “That painting hanging in our kitchen provides a good example of the range of colors I derive from combining different earths. Many of my paints come from the environment. I brought a kilo of clay from Chihuahua and used it to make paint for that male figure looking skyward. That white is an oxide.” Indeed the breadth of colors he is able to create for use on both his sculptures and his paintings is remarkable.
Manuel’s canvases are generally “mixed technique” as he refers to them, a combination of oil, acrylic and natural earth. Depending on the inspiration for a particular work, and the imagery he seeks to convey, the order and manner of application and the texture and origin of the soil applied, will vary.
Reyes goes on to explain the sexual imagery captured in many pieces from his current crop of sculptures: “I’ve been doing a fair number with nude males since 2005, not initially by specific design, but rather because that’s what is often depicted in pre-Hispanic art and representations of day-to-day activities, and that’s the kind of work that I’ve enjoyed doing over the past three years. When you look at the earliest Zapotec clay figures, and in fact those dating to Olmec and earlier times, that’s what my ancestors were creating. A number of sculptures portray hope and prayer as well, so much a part of ancient times, with head looking upward to the heavens and hands raised.” When questioned about the over-representation in his figures of males with dangling phalluses, Reyes points to a couple of female pieces: “Look at that female warrior over there. But notice the belt I made for her, with penises hanging from it, her trophies.”
Reyes readily acknowledges that this is still a business, his livelihood, and when gay male collectors began taking an interest in this phase of his artistic development, it motivated him to continue with it and further experiment with the theme of male sexuality as depicted in the codices and sculptures of earlier civilizations.
But Manuel’s work also reflects his personal interests and passions, his reverence for Oaxaca’s present day rich cultural traditions, and his eclecticism whereby he’s prepared to push the outer boundary of what’s traditionally considered art, at times combining aestheticism with pure functionality: “I know a really good carpenter here in Yanhuitlan, and thought of combining our two trades, sort of as a fun project. I asked him to make me a cabinet with shelves and doors. I painted it and then put six mask tiles, each with a fair bit of relief, on the door panels. It came out really funky and a collector bought it within a couple of weeks of when I’d finished it.
Reyes has begun experimenting with masks as an art form. Their use at fiestas and for parades is common practice in Oaxaca, the tradition dating back perhaps 3,000 years, when permanent settlements were first established in the region. He pays tribute to the ritualistic use of masks with one of his sculptures, a marcher holding a mask in front of his face, still a common sight at Oaxacan celebrations today.
On a recent visit to Reyes’ home, the music of Lou Reed was playing. Rock, blues and other genres of the 60’s and 70’s are included in this extraordinary man’s list of delights. And of course, they are reflected in his work. He’s created clay painted figures of John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison, simply as a way of paying homage to some of his rock idols. Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven was the inspiration for one of his more “traditional” sculptures, with four men each climbing up a rung of a ladder made of reinforced steel covered with twine, each step framed by horn-shaped clouds.
More recently Reyes has become interested in depicting vestiges of the material culture of his indigenous forebears, combining his gift as a skilled artist with the work of an applied archaeologist. For example he recently found a potsherd with a painted design, and through extrapolation has created an entire, accurately crafted three-footed vessel.
Through his art, Manuel Reyes is continually looking for new modes of self-expression, while at the same time reflecting on diverse cultures, both present-day and of the near and distant past. He’s a true renaissance man whose golden touch will undoubtedly, over time, become appreciated by an increased following. The exhibitions of his work in Huajuapan de León and at the Museo del Arte Popular in San Bartolo Coyotepec where one piece remains on permanent display, pale compared to what’s in store for Manuel … and art aficionados around the globe.
Alvin Starkman received his Masters in Social Anthropology in 1978. After teaching for a few years he attended Osgoode Hall Law School, thereafter embarking upon a successful career as a litigator until 2004. Alvin, while still a good-standing member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, now resides with his wife Arlene in Oaxaca, where he writes, leads small group tours to the villages, markets, ruins and other sights, is a consultant to documentary film companies, and operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.oaxacadream.com ), providing the comfort and service of lodging in a Oaxaca hotel, with the personal touch of a quaint country inn.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
