Publisher University of New Mexico Press; First Edition (January 1, 1978) Language English Hardcover 136 pages ISBN-10 0826304729 ISBN-13 978-0826304728
https://www.amazon.com/potters-Mexico-Irwin-Whitaker/dp/0826304729
A POTTER'S MEXICO by Irwin and Emily Whitaker, published by
University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, 136 pages with 115
black-and-white and 40 color photographs. $17.50.
With great sympathy and appreciation, Irwin and Emily Whitaker
give the reader insight on the location, conditions of life, and
changing environment of the contemporary folk potters of Mexico.
The informative text is documented by excellent photographs.
According to the authors, "This book is an attempt to record . | |
a unique art form as it exists now and to plead for its survival."
They are convinced that study of Mexican pottery, with its diverse
techniques ranging from crudely primitive to highly sophisticated,
offers a "living compendium of ceramic history. In Mexico the 10th
and the 20th century lie side by side in the same connubial bed."
Firing, fuels, and kilns, clay forming and finishing, and decorative
processes are all covered. The everyday pottery, la loza corriente,
is discussed along with its intimate connection with the daily lives
of the people. The relationship of diet to pottery form and the his-tory
of dietary changes with the coming of the Spaniards are im-portant
facets in the evolution of pottery shapes. The book closes
with a section on "The Artists" in clay. A phenomenon growing
out of folk culture, these emerging individuals are bringing new life
to Mexican pottery, with their extensions from traditional to inno-vative
forms that express personal imagery. —MIKHAIL ZAKIN