Zapotec Weavers of Teotitlan

Rating:
Summary: Gorgeous and informative, but nix the "magic"
Review: I enjoyed this book a great deal, and will no doubt go back to it again and again. The photos of both historic and modern weavings are gorgeous, and I especially appreciated the detailed description (and photos) of the laborious process of washing, carding, spinning, and dyeing the wool before weaving can begin. The photo of a man rinsing cochineal-dyed skeins in a stream is especially evocative, showing clouds of the red dye blooming in blue water. My only complaint is that the author occassionally seems as if she's selling the town and its inhabitants in the same way she sells their crafts. I think we need to ban the word "magical" from all descriptions of indigenous/low tech comunities until we acknowledge the "magic" of our voodoo market economy and the hard materialism present in even idyllic-seeming villages. But that's a relatively minor flaw in a very good book.

Rating:
Summary: Gorgeous and informative, but nix the "magic"
Review: I enjoyed this book a great deal, and will no doubt go back to it again and again. The photos of both historic and modern weavings are gorgeous, and I especially appreciated the detailed description (and photos) of the laborious process of washing, carding, spinning, and dyeing the wool before weaving can begin. The photo of a man rinsing cochineal-dyed skeins in a stream is especially evocative, showing clouds of the red dye blooming in blue water. My only complaint is that the author occassionally seems as if she's selling the town and its inhabitants in the same way she sells their crafts. I think we need to ban the word "magical" from all descriptions of indigenous/low tech comunities until we acknowledge the "magic" of our voodoo market economy and the hard materialism present in even idyllic-seeming villages. But that's a relatively minor flaw in a very good book.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent work on Zapotec culture
Review: I have lived and worked in Oaxaca, Mexico for over 30 years. My parents and I went there for the first time in 1965. They stayed and built a life there. Over the years I financed my many trips to see them with import and export between the two countires. During those times of importing rugs from Teotitlan, woven goods from Mitla, pottery and wooden animals from various villages, I built strong relationships with the Zapotec Indians. I still visit and see them several time per year. Imagine my delight when I opened up Ms. Stanton's fine book and saw familiar faces, patterns of tapestries and rugs that I had been a part of, and an in depth exploration of the Zapotec reality in a changing world. This is a well written book, with a deep cultural understanding, and a fine display and history of those wonderful rugs that the Zapotecs of Teotitlan del Valle continue to produce. If you are going to buy one book that is high in quality and gives a real glimpse into the lives of the Oaxacan Indians....this it it.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book on Teotitlán del Valle weaving/ weavers
Review: This book is well-written as well as thoughtfully and lavishly illustrated, giving one a true insight into the famous Zapotec weavers of this lovely and traditional Oaxacan community. Zapotec precolumbian traditions are mentioned, and the illustrations show many steps in creating dies, yarns and weavings ranging from the traditionally inspired to the most avant garde, from natural dies to the use of anilines and naturally colored churro wools.

As one who has spent time learning to appreciate the arts of weaving and embroidery from weavers through Mexico and Guatemala, including a hospitable and skilled family in Teotitlán, I heartily recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the topic covered.

Rating:
Summary: Buy Before You Fly
Review: This is an excellent book with gorgeous photos of Zapotec rugs and weavings. I recently returned from a trip to Oaxaca where I had the opportunity to visit the village of Teotitlan and purchase some rugs from one of the families featured in the book. I just wish I had read the book before I went so that I could appreciate the beautiful examples that I saw even more. Besides the information on the laborious process of making the rugs, the book tells the differences and qualities that make some "works of art" and some imitations. And in telling the story of the weavings, the friendliness and pride of the weaving families must be told. I will treasure the book as well as my memories of the village of Teotitlan and her people.