At the exhibition From tradition to contemporary, which is presented at the Museum of Popular Art (MAP), artisans from the municipality of Cuetzalan, in the Sierra Norte of Puebla, show the embroidery of their everyday garments, huipils or blouses, along with those that also adorn custom-made wedding dresses. as an established brand sells.
Seven years ago, designer Claudia Toffano founded the brand that bears her name, and almost since then she has worked with artisans from the communities of Pinahuista, San Pedro Camocuautla and Xalpantzingo, Puebla, through the Saber para la Vida association, a non-profit organization for-profit organization dedicated to the economic and social development of communities of women living in poverty.
The wedding dresses on display are embroidered, woven or unraveled, all by hand, with more contemporary designs, both the work and the fabrics, not the traditional iconography of the region. They are dresses that Toffano creates together with the artisans: We send them the fabrics so that they can carry out the textile crafts part. When designing a dress, I do it together with the artisans to make sure the embroidery works on the fabric in question. Then, they embroider it, return it and we take care of the sewing
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In the time they have been collaborating they have created more than 100 wedding dresses, of different models and even in macramé, fabric we had never made
says Clara Romero Vázquez, originally from the village of Pinahuista.
“We learned to work on finer garments, which we did not embroider before. We had only done the pepenado –traditional embroidery technique of the region– in square, blanket and twine. With Claudia we work on other garments in other fabrics.
We have done applications, as well as other techniques, such as macramé. We make embroidery designs from which we create a dress model, which Claudia orders us to do.
▲ Pieces that are part of the exhibition, which will remain until January 26 in the Piece of the Month room of the venue located in the Historic Center.Photo courtesy of MAP
Blanket, square and twine
Regarding the traditional embroidery of the region, Romero Vázquez explains that the pepenado technique is what is most used in Xalpantzingo and Pinahuista, while the bead is related to San Pedro Camocuatula.
We embroider on a blanket. We count the points to make a drawing, a bird, for example. On the blanket the drawings come out smaller than on the square. In twine it also comes out smaller.
The designs represent the nature of the region, birds, squirrels and butterflies, every little animal there is. We base ourselves on nature and we do it in the application of a blouse or any garment that we are going to make.
. Geometric motifs are also used.
María Rosa Francisco, an artisan also from Pinahuista, reiterates: We started embroidering with the traditional blouses that our grandmothers instilled in us. With Claudia we innovate to make garments from other models, such as wedding dresses
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Besides, We instill in our sons and daughters so that they learn to embroider and want to wear it, because many people don’t want to. We work so that they value it and use it
points out Romero Vázquez.
For Walther Boelsterly, director of the MAP, the exhibition shows us that popular art evolves and adapts to different material proposals, as well as different iconography.
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Claudia Toffano has just launched an Internet page with the idea of selling her wedding dresses in other countries (www.claudiatoffano.com).
The exhibition From tradition to contemporary It will remain until January 26 in the MAP Piece of the Month room (Revillagigedo 11, Historic Center).