Mexican textiles have a vitality that is unsurpassed elsewhere in the Americas. The arts of spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery are practiced in hundreds of rural communities where indigenous people retain distinctive clothing styles. Their sense of design and color is dazzling and in many cases native traditions, such as Mayan or Mixtec, are coupled with postcolonial influences to fabulous effect.
Over 20 such pieces from the British Museumís vast collections have been photographed and explored in detail for this book. They range from a nineteenth-century rebozo, or shawl, made for a wealthy landowner to everyday pieces such as a huipil from Oaxaca. Anyone interested in textiles and design will find a wealth of inspiration in this book, and the detailed photographs will reveal unexpected nuances of pattern-making.
Drawing on her extensive travels in Mexico, Chloe Sayer provides a living context for these varied textiles. Techniques and clothing styles are explained, and brief commentaries highlight the key features that make the designs so eye-catching and uniquely Mexican.
