Merecemos Una Cerveza

It's funny how words or phrases become triggers for a person or a group. The trigger from this last trip was Merecemos una cerveza (We deserve a beer.). That phrase has popped into conversation many times since Estela used it in February at her talavera pottery workshop called Liceagui in Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, Mexico.

The whole statement was, Despues de tanto trabajo, merecemos una cerveza. (After so much hard work, we deserve a beer.) We had arrived late in the day on a Saturday. Both Estela and her husband Gerardo were at the workshop. We quickly set to work selecting already-made pieces and ordering other popular pieces to be made for us. As we set about on our quest, Estela started writing the order. She's quite fast (and accurate). But, it still took a long time to hand write the six pages of the invoice.

Estela, Gerardo and their daughter Maria

  

At one point we were looking for a large chicken planter and Estela thought she had one in the adjoining production workshop. We had never been in that building and I trouped over with her to check it out (without my camera). There we found the sought-for planter amid piles of rocks and molds and fired pottery. A small machine was in constant motion. Estela explained that the rocks (see photo below) were being agitated to create the clay that is used to form the pottery. It would take at least a couple hours to turn the rock into usable clay. We marveled at the many hours of manual and machine labor needed to produce the colorful pieces we sell at Chiripa.

The rock that gets agitated and dissolved to form the clay for the pottery.

It was evening by the time we finished our selection and Estela was totaling the pages and the final invoice. She then offered us a beverage and said, Despues de tanto trabajo, merecemos una cerveza. Who could refuse! -kl

Around Lake Patzcuaro-Santa Fe de la Laguna

Photos and thoughts from the February 2012 Chiripa buying trip to Mexico.

We don't often get to the far north side of Lake Patzcuaro. But, in the small village of Santa Fe de la Laguna one can find some of the most beautiful and contemporary-looking lead-free pottery. It is the work of Nicholas Fabian and his wife Maria del Rosario. On this trip we arrived to find no one home. And then, a Chiripa (happy accident): Maria came walking down the street and welcomed us into their home. 

 Maria wearing a traditional Purépecha rebozo 

in front of a wall of newly made pottery.

After we had selected the new product for Chiripa I asked Maria to step into their courtyard for another photo. To me, she projects pride and honor. She and Nicolas were part of the first group of potters in that area that recognized the need to switch to lead-free production techniques. She is a proud of their indigenous heritage and confident in their art. She is the one that makes the forms and Nicholas is the one who etches the designs. They are a partnership and both names are etched on the bottom of all pieces.

We were sad to miss Nicolas on this trip, but we learned that he now has access to email when he goes into town. Next time, we'll plan ahead.

A true team: Maria del Rosario and Nicholas Fabian photographed in 2008.

-kl