Returning to Mata Ortiz.. and an Evening that we will Remember Forever

Continuation... Sunday November 22, 2009

We returned to Mata Ortiz for some Pottery Buying!! Oh how we love our buying trips...

First stop this afternoon was at the house of Julio Mora, an artist that specializes in really beautiful miniature ollas, both with traditional and modern designs. We had purchased pots from Julio's wife on our trip 3 years ago, but had never actually met Julio. Interestingly enough on that trip, we had placed a large order for the miniature pots. Julio and his wife had fired 50 of the little guys, but when we returned to purchase them.... sadly, only 5 had survived the firing because of strong winds! That was so disappointing, not only for us as we could only purchase the 5 survivors, but for the Mora's as well... so much work, and almost all had broken! This time we were really lucky -- we ended up with 25 miniatures! I just love the miniatures, and I think they are even more difficult..so much time and patience, along with a very steady hand to paint them! Here's a picture of Julio holding some of his larger pottery...

Julio Mora is one of the artists that were featured in the well known book about Mata Ortiz Pottery, The Many Faces of Mata Ortiz. This book has become the go to guide for collector's of Mata Ortiz Pottery. One of the collector's favorite activities is to carry the book with them on visits to the village, and have the artists autograph the book for them.




Next we were off to see another potter that we had visited on our last trip... Angel Amaya. We were really excited to see Angel again. His pottery is very well made, and quite unique in the village. His pots are typically done in an deep orange/terracotta color with a white overlay painting - different in his own style, but very much in line with the more traditional designs that were popularized by the Quezada Family. This may be in part because he was taught the art of painting by Juan Quezada's sister Consolacion, and her son Mauro. Angel Amaya is from the Barrio Provenir section of town. His work is also featured in the book "The Many Faces of Mata Ortiz", and you can read more about him on page 82.

You can purchase some of this beautiful pottery by Angel Amaya on our website at http://www.desilvaimports.com/products/?cid=16
While supplies last...

Next we were off to the house of Manuel Mora Tena. This was a new potter for us, and we probably would never have stopped were it not for Manuel's beautiful mother, who flagged us down while were were driving down the street looking for Angel Amaya's house. When we came out of Angel's house, Manuel was outside waiting with some really quite nice pottery for us to look at. We grabbed a few of these.. the designs are quite pleasant and the price very affordable! We followed them back to their house, and they wrapped everything up nicely for us. We also enjoyed our visit at their house... a truly delightful family! Manuel is actually a cousin of Angel Amaya, and lives just a few houses down from him.

These pots can also be purchased through our website www.desilvaimports.com, or simply click the following link, and you will be redirected there: http://www.desilvaimports.com/products/?cid=16
Happy Shopping!!

Next it was back to Casas Grandes and La Casa del Nopal to unload our pottery, take a quick shower and change our clothes. By then it was time to head back to Mata Ortiz for dinner at the wonderful home of Adalberto Perez Meillon. Maria had said she would be there as well, and was doing part of the cooking, so we were looking forward to spending some more time with both of these great people. We just did not know how much of a treat we were in for...

We arrived at Adalberto's house right on time...which for us is a rarity, as we are almost always late late late!!! I instantly fell in love with Adalberto's place. It is not overdone at all, and is a traditional adobe home, but you can tell that an artist lives there. The living room was done with adobe walls painted all white, and the focal point was a spectacular fireplace that gave such a feeling of warmth to the whole house.

The fireplace was decorated simply, yet elegantly, with some beautiful pottery and basketry, a simple cross, and with a wonderful black and white photo of Adalberto's father (who we were happy to learn was a Zapotec Indian... and as some of you know, many of our favorite families in Oaxaca are of Zapotec ancestry. It is funny how many ways you find yourself connected to someone -- it really does make the world seem a lot smaller and more peaceful). I could have sat in that room for many more hours. It felt like a movie set was brought to life in front of me.

Maria Pinedo, our beautiful new friend from San Francisco, showed up with some of the best chicken we ever ate... cooked in a sauce of tomatoes, tomatillos and chipotle peppers. When combined with Adalberto's Rueditas... which are basically dried zucchini rounds that are re hydrated in boiling water, and then cooked in a spicy home made tomato sauce... oh my goodness! These two dishes were rounded off by perfect Mexican Rice and some perfectly simple and delicious cucumber spears. That was the best meal ever!!! Yum!!! We had never had Rueditas before, and learned that they are most commonly eaten around Semana Santa ... Holy Week, as a totally vegetarian dish. There are so many things to get out there and try in this world... what are you waiting for? Get thyself to Mata Ortiz and enjoy life as a local!

To our surprise, and a special treat in its own right, there were other guests at the dinner...two of the best pottery families in Mata Ortiz! We were so very honored and so very pleased to meet Goyo Silvera and his wife Gloria Hernandez, as well as Pilo Mora, his wife Delia and daughter Lupita! We were definitely amazed at our luck! Both of these pottery families are featured in "The Many Faces of Mata Ortiz", and Pilo Mora was the one potter that Spencer MacCallum had told us not to leave town without meeting. And here we were, face to face with some of the stars of our world...

The evening was so much fun!!! Goyo has this incredibly wonderful spirit... a sense of humor that just keeps on rolling! And Gloria's laugh can ignite a room... and be heard down the block! We spent the rest of the evening surrounded by good friends, laughter.. and a bit of tequila! (Well, not for me this evening... I was the designated driver, and the road back to Casas Grandes can be quite scary at night!)

Some of our favorite stories of the night:
1) Pan Crudo and Mayonessa !! Raw Bread and Mayonnaise... Goyo had us all howling as he told the story of how Gloria's sisters had moved to the US. They were really skinny when they left, but when they came back home they had gained quite a bit of weight. Gloria and Goyo asked them what had happened, and the sisters said that in the US we eat alot of raw bread coated in mayonnaise... an interesting take on those white bread sandwiches! Every time someone ate too much or complained of gaining weight...for the rest of the trip it had to do with the Pan Crudo and the Mayonessa.
2) Beans with Nine Spoonfuls of Chile... Super Hot Salsa!
Goyo told us a story about an American man that he became really good friends with over the years. When he came over to the house to eat with them, he was copying how Goyo was eating his food. Well, unfortunately for him, Goyo is a BIG FAN of super hot chile. Before eating his beans, Goyo added about 9 spoonfuls of chile, and the gringo decided to do the same...with each spoonful that Goyo added, the unaware Gringo did the same. Gloria tried to warn him, but he said he loved salsa as well. Well, suffice to say.. I am sure that he was not loving it the next day! He said he was breathing fire, and his tummy was aching right away! Poor devil!
3) Noche de Brujas
Gloria decided to have an all girls party for Halloween, and the called it the Noche de la Brujas, or the Witches' Night. Goyo came home early, and wanted to hang out. Gloria told him to go on and sleep outside in his car, that tonight the house was hers... La Noche de Brujas had no room for men!
4) Vas o Voy... You Go or I Go...
Gloria asked Goyo if he wanted to come along to the dinner. When he hesitated, Gloria simply told him either you go, or I go alone..won't make much difference to me either way! This has become my new favorite saying.. you can come along, or stay at home, but no one is raining on my party!

We laughed for hours!!!

Pilo and Goyo have been lifelong friends..since elementary school days.They have lots of stories to tell, and have remained close since those early days. In fact, when they first started in the pottery trade, they would even take the small local railway into Cuidad Juarez to sell their pottery together. Gloria and Delia have also been close for a very long time. You could tell by the energy in the room, that there is a lot of warmth and chemistry between these delightful people. Pilo told us that they wanted to show us a relaxed fun side.. that they knew that our life at home can be filled with stress... " we want to take you away from all that... to make you forget for awhile". Thanks to Adalberto and Maria, we were part of this very special group of friends! And we enjoyed the evening to its fullest!

And don't forget to check out our previous post with the information on Adalberto's  incredible paintings that are done on Amate Paper! Contact him through his website at http://www.potterymasters.com/ , and be sure to purchase one of his paintings! You are guaranteed to love it!!!

Sleep was calling. It had been a very long day. We took our leave of our new friends, and headed back to Casas Grandes... where we laughed in the memories of the evening, until we both fell asleep safe and sound and happy as could be!