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The Dollmakers of Mexico
Mother and Child Dolls "Even with slender means, the sentiment of the heart can be expressed." -I Ching (Sun/Decrease)
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Hand crocheted finger puppets
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The Dollmakers of Mexico
a grandmother Dollmaker sits on the steps of the market with her grandson
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Two Dollmakers stood in the sun warming themselves on a winter morning
on opposite ends of the town square in the ancient city of San Miguel de Allende,
Mexico. One of them wore a dark cape which did not really disguise the fact
that she was a tourist.
The other Dollmaker wore traditional skirts which matched
the colorful handmade dolls she carried in her arms across the cobblestone street,
with a Disneylandesque church behind her and flocks of pigeons in the air
and on the ground around her.
The two Dollmakers were about to meet.
They actually walked past one another at first,
when suddenly the Tourista Dollmaker did a double-take
and the Native Dollmaker heard the English word,
"WOw!"
The flashing lights came on, the beep-beep sounds,
and the Smithville Dollmaker backed up.
The Ancient-Traditions Dollmaker was hip to this body language,
and was already taking dolls out of her bag for show and tell,
in this case more show than tell, since neither could speak the other's language.
It was the dolls who did the talking anyway.
The Mother-and-Child, Madonna and Blessed Virgin of Guadeloupe
imagery runs deep through the heart of Mexico.
The American Dollmaker found shrines in Mexico to the Mother
everywhere she turned.
Here is the Market Madonna, right in the middle of the market,
with horns beeping and bicycle bells jingling and dogs and
music and little children and old women... she is there
right in the middle of it all...
...the other picture shows the Bus-stop Madonnas.
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a niche
How nice to see the celebration of the Divine Feminine,
thought the American Dollmaker, who was a mother, herself,
and could deeply appreciate the representation of the Divine Feminine
through the mediums of public shrines, Doll Art and Tin Art.
Tin Art
This artisan is out in front of his shop on the sidewalk cutting a sheet of tin
to make a little tin niche.
His wife paints the work when he is finished
and lays the finished pieces out to dry between newspapers.
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....some of the Tin Art from this couple's shop...
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A Celebration of COLOR
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The artisans of Mexico build their whole world with COLOR.
You can see this saleslady is driving the Wee Peeple Dollmaker wild.
Are you kidding! Of course the Dollmaker bought it!
She still really doesn't know exactly what it is! But just LOOK at it!
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I will always remember the COLOR in Mexico.
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Kandra Niagra, Dollmaker
PO Box 326
Smithville, Texas 78957
Phone: 512-332-6680
Email: bigkandra@aol.com
12/10
01/14