A Nativity Extravaganza

I have frequently mentioned the colonial mansion in the Historic Center of Mexico City known as Iturbide's Palace.  The building is now owned by Banamex (the Bank of Mexico), and is the headquarters of their cultural foundation.  Each year there are several exhibits held at the palace.  Perhaps the most eagerly awaited show is their annual exposition of "nacimientos" (Nativity scenes).  367 Nativity scenes created by more than 200 master artisans are on display.  They represent the vast variety of popular arts to be found throughout Mexico.

After I took Al and Stew to the top of the Latin American Tower, we walked a short distance down Madero Street to the palace.  The exhibit was one of the highlights of their visit to Mexico City.  The Nativity scenes are, for the most part, the same each year, but I always enjoy seeing them again.  I have written about the exposition here a number of times so I will simply share a few photographs.  Those of you have been reading my blog for a number of years might even recognize some of these Nativity scenes from earlier posts.

This scene is from San Bartolo Coyotepec in the state of Oaxaca.  The town is famous for its black pottery.  All of the Nativity figures are portrayed wearing traditional attire of the state.  The Three Kings are wearing the headdresses of the "feather dancers" of Oaxaca.

The town of Metepec in the State of Mexico is famous for elaborate clay pieces known as "Trees of Life".  The exhibit included several depicting the Nativity.

This whimsical wooden figure is from the state of Yucatán.  Joseph, Mary and the Baby, and the Three Kings are shown riding a carrousel.

This stone carving, also from Yucatán, portrays the Holy Family and an angel in the garb of the ancients Mayas.

An exquisite scene from the state of Michoacán with figures modeled from wax wearing hand woven clothing

A colorful painting from the state of Guerrero done on "amate" paper made from the bark of the fig tree.

One of the specialties of the Huichol people of western Mexico is to create pictures by gluing colored yarn onto a board.

These clay figures were done by one of the Aguilar sisters, well-known artisans from the town of Ocotlán de Morelos in Oaxaca.

These charming figures come from the pottery town of Tonalá in the state of Jalisco.

Al just posted an entry on his blog about our visit.  You can read it and see more photos here...

The Nativity Reinvented – El Rancho Santa Clara

From the Top

It has been a long time since I have been to the top of the Latin American Tower, a 44 story skyscraper in the heart of Mexico City.  When it was completed in 1956, it was the tallest building in all of Latin America.  The structure was notable for its pioneering engineering techniques which have made it able to withstand major earthquakes without damage.  Although numerous skyscrapers in the city have surpassed the Latin American Tower in height, its observation deck, the highest in the city, remains a popular destination for visitors.

Our friends Al and Stew had never been to the top of the tower, so when they were here in Mexico City for a visit we went up to the top for the view of the sprawling city.  Even though it's the dry season, we had a heavy downpour the night before.  I thought that the rain might clear the air, but unfortunately the smog was heavy.  Nevertheless, the view is impressive.  I pointed out the major landmarks to them, and it helped them get their bearings in this mammoth metropolis.

Looking to the south, you can see one of the city's major thoroughfares, Avenida Lázaro Cárdenas.  When I first came to Mexico as a student more than fifty years ago, I remember that this avenue was named San Juan de Letrán.  It was later renamed in honor of one of Mexico's Presidents.  It is also known as the "Eje Central" (Central Axis).  Major arterial routes throughout the city are referred to as "ejes", and Lázaro Cárdenas cuts through much of the center of the city in a north - south direction.

Still looking to the south, can you make out through the smog the vague outline on the horizon of the World Trade Center which is located close to the apartment?

Looking to the west, the green expanse of the Alameda Park is below us.  In the upper left hand corner are the buildings which line the Paseo de la Reforma.

Next to the Alameda, directly below us, is the Palace of Fine Arts.  Notice the shadow of the Latin American Tower cast across the "Eje Central".

Looking to the north there are a number of notable buildings...  A. the original headquarters of the Bank of Mexico   B. the main post office, an ornate building known as the "Palacio Postal"   C. the National Museum of Art   D.  the Palace of Mining, a neoclassical building which originally housed the colonial school of mining and which is now owned by the engineering department of the National University.

Looking to the east, pedestrianized Madero Street cuts through the heart of the city´s historic center.

Madero Street empties into the Zócalo, the city's main plaza.  Facing the plaza are A) the National Palace and B) the Metropolitan Cathedral.  You can also see the enormous Mexican flag which flies over the Zócalo.

If it were a very clear day, the volcanoes would be out there to the east.

Photos of Photos

When our friends Al and Stew were visiting Mexico City, one of the places that Al wanted to visit was the "Centro de la Imagen", a cultural center that features photography exhibitions.  It is located in a large, late colonial building known as "La Ciudadela" (The Citadel).  "La Ciudadela" was originally built to house the Royal Tobacco Factory, but after Mexico won its independence it was converted into a military barracks.  In 1946 the building became the Library of Mexico, and in 1994 a portion of it was inaugurated as a photography museum.

Coincidentally, I had just visited the "Centro de la Imagen" the week before.  Some of the exhibits were more interesting than others.  Ironically, photography in this photography museum is quite difficult.  First of all, this is another one of those places that has the ridiculous rule that pictures can be taken only with cell phones.  Secondly, the photographs are, of course, behind glass.  So, you have to try to position yourself in such a way that you don't get a reflection. 

Nevertheless, I did manage to take a few decent pictures from one of the more interesting exhibits... one dealing with Mexican portrait photography.

  Some portraits taken at the end of the 19th century, and early 20th century

There were a number of historic photographs of famous Mexicans.

An official portrait of Porfirio Díaz, the President / dictator who ruled Mexico from 1876 until 1911.  The photo was taken in 1900.

A portrait of Emiliano Zapata taken in 1913.  Zapata fought for the distribution of land to the peasants during the Mexican Revolution.

This photo of the famous mural painter David Alfaro Siqueiros was taken in 1960 when the artist was in jail for his political activities.

Two Concerts

Last week our friends Al and Stew came in from San Miguel de Allende (about four hours away by bus) to spend some time in Mexico City.  They wanted to see a couple of concerts featuring world-famous violinists, Joshua Bell and Gil Shaham.  Both concerts were to be held at Sala Netzahualcoyotl, the music hall on the campus of UNAM (the National University of Mexico).

The Joshua Bell concert was last Thursday. I had never been to Sala Netzahualcoyotl before, and I was very impressed by the building.

It was built in 1976 and is considered one of the most important concert halls in Latin America.

The program consisted of two works... Saint Saens' Cello Concerto in A Minor with soloist Ivan Koulikov, and the Violin Concerto in B Minor with Bell.

The concert was pleasant, but, frankly, I was not really "wowed" by it.  The orchestra was a group called "Camarata Opus 11".  Coming from Cleveland, home of one of the greatest orchestras in the world, I guess I am a bit of a music snob.  The "Camarata" was competent, but it cannot hold a candle to the Cleveland Orchestra.  In spite of his fame, I was not that impressed with Joshua Bell's performance.  Later, I read in a number of places that Bell has a reputation for rudeness, arrogance and inappropriate behavior.

On Saturday night, we returned to the same venue for a concert by the Philharmonic Orchestra of UNAM.  The featured soloist was Gil Shaham in Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto.

This concert was much more enjoyable.  The UNAM orchestra is larger and is far superior to the "Camarata".  (OK, it's still not the Cleveland Orchestra, but it is very good.)  Founded in 1936, it is the oldest symphonic group in Mexico.  Gil Shaham's performance was marvelous, He seems like an unpretentious, nice guy.  He had a smile on his face throughout the entire concerto and a good rapport with the orchestra.

I sneaked a photo while Shaham was playing a solo encore.

Al, Stew and Alejandro after the concert

Thanks to Al and Stew.  I would have never known about the concerts if they had not told me about them!

Christmas Portraits

A couple weekends ago, Alejandro and I passed the World Trade Center on the way to supper.  We could see that there was an elaborate Christmas display in the lobby of the exhibition halls.  When we returned we went inside and took some photos with Alejandro's cell phone.

It was a good thing that we took the photos when we did.  The next day, I was surprised to see that the decorations were gone.  Apparently they had been set up for a private holiday party that was being held that night in one of the halls.

However, in another portion of the World Trade Center there were some permanent decorations, and we took some more pictures of ourselves there.

Textile Fair

The weekend before last, a textile fair was held at Los Pinos, the former Presidential compound in Chapultepec Park which is now a cultural center.   More than 100 stands were set up outside with vendors from all over Mexico selling clothing and other products.  It was a colorful display of handiwork. 

There was one small area showcasing the textiles of Guatemala.  Unfortunately, there were no items for sale, but several ladies from that country were working on their backstrap looms.

After browsing through all of the stalls, I made a couple of purchases as Christmas presents.

The Inspiration of a Classic

When I was in high school, almost every eleventh grade student read Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic novel, "The Scarlet Letter".  My teacher, however, was a young women who was too embarrassed to teach a story which dealt with adultery and a child born out of wedlock in 17th century Puritan Massachusetts.  Instead, we read Hawthorne's other famous novel, "The House of the Seven Gables".

I never did read "The Scarlet Letter", but I recently finished a novel which gives a fictional account of how Hawthorne was inspired to create the protagonist of "The Scarlet Letter", the adulteress, Hester Prynne.  

"Hester", written by Laurie Lico Albanese is set in 19th century Massachusetts. It tells the story of Isobel Gamble, a young Scottish seamstress who comes to America with her much older husband, a pharmacist who is a drunkard and opium addict. They settle in Salem, but her husband soon takes off on a departing ship, accepting a job as a medic.  Isobel is left alone, struggling to support herself through her extraordinary talent for embroidery.  She meets the young, handsome, aspiring writer, Nathaniel Hawthorne.  The two are drawn to each other and begin a secretive affair.

Lico Albanese did meticulous historical research to recreate life in the Salem of that era.  She offers a fictitious but believable explanation of how Hawthorne was inspired to write his most famous work.

 

Prize Winners

After walking through the Yucatan Festival at the Museum of Popular Cultures in Coyoacán, I went inside and looked at one of the museum's temporary exhibits.  Each year, the Secretariat of Culture, FONART (the National Fund for the Promotion of Handicrafts) and  BANAMEX (the National Bank of Mexico) sponsor a contest to award the Grand National Prize of Popular Arts.  This is the fiftieth year for the contest, and all of the winners are on display in the museum.  A total of 129 awards are given in 36 categories and subcategories.  So, the hall was filled with a wide variety of handicrafts... pieces that often go beyond being mere handicrafts and are truly pieces of fine art.  Here are a few of the winners...

Hand-hammered copperware from the state of Michoacán

Crosses carved from stone

Religious figures modeled from bees wax from the city of Salamanca, Guanajuato

Black pottery from Oaxaca

Lacquer-covered gourds from the states of Guerrero and Michoacán

A picture created from feathers from Michaocán

 A design created from gluing yarn onto a board, a specialty of the Huichol people

A guitar and a violin decorated with beadwork, another specialty of the Huichol

Wood-carving from the state of Chiapas

Hand-woven and embroidered clothing from Chiapas

Pottery from Michoacán

Talavera ware from the state of Tlaxcala

A painted plate from Tonalá, a town in the state of Jalisco noted for its pottery

A plate from Tonalá featuring the eagle and serpent, the national emblem of Mexico