México tiene historias que el mundo necesita conocer. La de Barro negro pottery es una de las más complejas, más reveladoras y, en muchos sentidos, más urgentes de entender. Aquí está el contexto que las noticias rara vez ofrecen.
La historia detrás
Barro negro pottery (“black clay”) is a style of pottery from Oaxaca, Mexico, distinguished by its color, sheen and unique designs. Oaxaca is one of few Mexican states which is characterized by the continuance of its ancestral crafts, which are still used in everyday life. Barro negro is one of several pottery traditions in the state, which also include the glazed green pieces of Santa María Atzompa; however, barro negro is one of the best known and most identified with the state. It is also one of the most popular styles of pottery in Mexico. The origins of this pottery style extends as far back as the Monte Albán period. For almost all of this pottery’s history, it had been available only in a grayish matte finish. In the 1950s, a potter named Doña Rosa devised a way to put a black metallic-like sheen onto the pottery by polishing it before firing. This look has increased the style’s popularity. From the 1980s to the present, an artisan named Carlomagno Pedro Martínez has promoted i
Los protagonistas
This style of pottery is made in San Bartolo Coyotepec and a large number of small communities in the surrounding valley, where the clay that gives it its color is found. This community is located 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) south of the city of Oaxaca, with about 600 families in the area dedicated to the craft. In addition to a number of family workshops, including Doña Rosa’s, the Mercado de Artesanias is an important attraction which brings visitors from many parts of Mexico and other countries. A group of fourteen people exhibit and sell barro negro objects. Some of these products include vases, animal figures and jars. Demonstrations of pottery making are held there as well. In 2005, the Museo Estatal de Arte Popular de Oaxaca (State Museum of Popular Art) was opened here. It has one of its three halls dedicated to barro negro, with pieces from the Monte Albán era to the present day. In 2009, San Bartolo Coyotepec held its first Feria Artesanal de Barro Negro (Crafts Fair of Barro Negr
Dato clave: Many areas of the valley become covered with thick vegetation, with enough plants to cover the surface to cause deoxygenation.
Lo que los documentales no muestran
The clay that is found to make barro negro is found in recent alluvial valley deposits and is a product of disintegrated volcanic tuffs and finer sediments from gneisses. Many areas of the valley become covered with thick vegetation, with enough plants to cover the surface to cause deoxygenation. Deoxygenation occurs to the underlying sediment causing the red iron oxides to turn black. The color of barro negro is derived from the properties of the clay, and is not colored. The earth used to extract the clay is cleaned to remove impurities, which can take a month of soaking and settling out the clay from the rest of the soil. After this process, each piece takes about twenty days to complete. Traditionally, the clay is molded on plates balanced on rocks to that they can be spun by hand. Modern potters’ tools are not used. Large pieces, such as cantaros are fashioned from the bottom up, adding clay as the piece grows. After it is shaped, the pieces are set to dry in a well-insulated room
Las consecuencias
Barro negro pottery has been the subject of considerable study and documentation. Barro negro pottery is a style of pottery from Oaxaca, Mexico, distinguished by its color, sheen and unique designs. Oaxaca is one of few Mexican states which is characterized by the continuance of its ancestral crafts, which are still used in everyday life. Barro negro is one of several pottery traditions in the state, which also include the glazed green pieces of Santa María Atzompa; however, barro negro is one of the best known and most identified with the state. It is also one of the most popular styles of pottery in Mexico. The origins of this pottery style extends as far back as the Mont
Por qué esta historia importa
La historia de Barro negro pottery no es solo un relato del pasado. Es un espejo que nos ayuda a entender el México de hoy — sus contradicciones, su resiliencia, sus retos y su potencial. Conocerla es un primer paso hacia una conversación más honesta sobre el país y la sociedad que queremos construir.
[ ENCUESTA RÁPIDA ]