Yarn and Beads...More than Arts and Crafts

As I walked along Tucson’s artistic and eclectic 4th Avenue, passing the restaurants, vintage stores, and smoke shops wedged between a tattoo parlor and a hookah lounge is an art store that offers indigenous Mexican artwork.

The Sacred Desert Huichol (WEE-chol) Shop, provides the Tucson community with an opportunity to glimpse into the culture and lifestyle of two ancient Mexican ethnic groups, the Huichol and the Tepehuano (tep-e-WAH-no). The Huichols and Tepehuanos have been living in the area near the Sierra Madre Occidental for centuries and in that time have perfected their art styles.

I first encountered Huichol art this summer working with children at a summer fine arts camp. We made our own pieces out of yarn and glue while learning and admiring the intricacies of these ancient people. It was with this limited amount of knowledge that I ventured into the small shop.

The Huichol and Tepehuano tribes are known for their detailed yarn paintings and beaded work saturated with symbolism that reflects the nature of the people. They have been doing beaded work since the 13th century while their yarn paintings really developed in the 1950s. The tribes have been allies and friends for thousands of years, so while the Huichols developed the techniques the Tepehuanos have adapted them to their style. The major differences between the styles are the themes found within the yarn:

Tepehuano art is made to chase bad energy or spirits out of the home or body by using animal guides (deer, eagles, hummingbirds) and by drawing from the Great Source (the heavens and the earth).
Huichol designs can either be mandala art (doorways into another world protected by guardians so as to allow the enlightened through the portal and protect the unenlightened from being lost), rain art (praying to ancestors and gods for rain to have a profitable crop), or offering art (paintings to highlight the commune with ancestors and gods via animal intermediaries).

Store owner, Robert Reus, has been traveling to the heart of Central Mexico to retrieve the best pieces of Huichol and Tepehuano art to provide an outlet for these artisans here in Tucson. For the past four years, he has traveled twice a year to search for the best pieces in hopes that the community can discover the beauty of this art.

“Tucsonans seem appreciative of the art,” Reus said. “No one has ever left this store unhappy or mistreated and I’ve never had any returns.”

Reus works with all of his patrons to find homes for the artwork. He combines discounts and payment plans whenever needed. The artwork ranges in price from 6" X 6" paintings starting at $14 to the largest pieces starting at $300 and increasing. All of the beaded figurines range from $10 -$50.

Border Film Series

Another weekend stuck in the residence hall translates into another movie about the U.S. – Mexico border. This time I wanted to watch something with more depth and that was a closer look at the convoluted mess that is the border.

The movie simply entitled, Border, is a documentary by amateur filmmaker Chris Burgard who wanted to film the lives of those people who are dealing with this issue everyday. He claims to show both sides of the story by both filming advocates for illegal immigrants’ rights and by filming the lives of volunteers from the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps (MCDC).

I enjoyed the get-it-done-yourself aspect of this expose, but although Burgard tried to remain fair and balanced he never claimed to be a journalist, so as the film progressed it was easy to see which side he preferred. For example, for most of the film he takes Chris Simcox, founder of MCDC, along with him on his tour bus to have 24 hour access to him. Really? That sounds fair.


The full title of the film is Border: The Divide Between the American Dream and the American Nightmare and he does a good job of covering both sides. He interviews immigrants who’ve crossed the border, MCDC directors from all of the border states, Border Patrol agents, demonstrators, American Civil Liberties Union members, Border Action Network representatives, Isabel Garcia from Derechos Humanos, No More Deaths members, ranch owners, rough riders, and director of Humane Borders. He also traveled to Washington D.C. to talk to two politicians: Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Congressman Tom Tancredo (R-CO).

The film opens with the Star Spangled Banner and this sets the tone for the audience because instantly the question of citizenship and patriotism comes to mind. The film shows these “characters” in this reality documentary as acting in accordance with their idea of what American patriotism enables them to do in order to defend America.



Throughout the film the director throws in figures to highlight the vast amount of money and resources being spent on this “War on the Border.” The most interesting fact was from a 2005 Washington Post article that stated $10.5 billion was the amount spent annually in California to cover the cost of illegal aliens including education, health care, and incarceration; $1 billion was the amount contributed by Los Angeles County alone.

A new thing I learned about from this movie was the concept of a “rape tree.” According to MCDC representatives these are trophy trees wherein coyotes take the most attractive women and rape them under specific trees and have the women then leave their panties on the limbs for other coyotes to find. It seemed like a perverse practice that has been gaining popularity in the southwestern borders.

The most intriguing part of the film is when the crew films a night expedition in the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge only a mile north of the border where cell phone reception does not exist and people warn them of the merciless coyotes. You watch as thermal cameras capture a group of 29 migrants come within 50 feet of the crew and then another group of 19 drug mules also pass by. For a moment, one of the immigrants spots the camera and takes the group in a path away from the crew and thereby avoiding a precarious situation.

The filmmaker was a fan of picking an issue associated with the border like medical care, violence, the Patriot Act, and drug mules to show clips wherein these Americans contradict each other. The film was a bit long and continued to show the same story in multiple ways. In the end, I would recommend seeing this film if you are interested in seeing documentaries about the border, but take it with a grain of salt because you’ll discover quickly that this film does not clear anything up, rather it just films the complexity of this issue.

By the way this movie is 1 hour and 47 minutes long. It felt like 3 and a half hours long.

Secrets, Secrets Are So Much Fun

Everybody loves secrets. Watching a group of first graders teaches us that the only thing that spreads faster than germs is a juicy secret. This week’s blog looks into 500-year-old secrets of Spanish artists, Fernando Gallego and Maestro Bartolomé.

On the University of Arizona campus is a great resource for any patron of the arts (which by virtue of you reading this blog allows you the privilege of calling yourself a patron). The University of Arizona Museum of Art (UAMA) currently houses eight different galleries ranging the gamut from pre-Columbian statues to 20th century paintings. For visitors there is a $5 fee for entry, but if you are a student or faculty member of the UA then it is FREE ninety-nine (insert laughter now).

The exhibit entitled, Fernando Gallego and His Workshop: The Altarpiece from Ciudad Rodrigo, features 26 massive Spanish medieval oil paintings that in conjunction form an impressive collection of the greatest moments of Jesus Christ’s live and death. The collaboration of Gallego and Bartolomé is unexpected, but very much appreciated. Here are my photos of my favorite pieces.

OK, so the coolest thing about this exhibit was the CSI style of research done on these pieces to determine the authorship of the individual paintings. The pieces were shipped to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas and under the guidance of Chief Conservator Claire Barry some wicked investigations took place. They used ultraviolet light, infrared rays, microscopes, and X-rays to peer under the paint and see the under-drawings.

“Using infrared allows us to examine what’s right underneath the paint to see the artistic process,” Barry said.

Here is an example from Bartolomé’s The Creation of Eve.




And here is Gallego’s Pilate Washing His Hands.



So in the black and white under-drawings you can see the process behind these Spanish artists’s work. For example in Gallego’s Pilate Washing His Hands in the upper left window you can see Pilate’s wife who in the final painting has disappeared. Her presence could have symbolized something that Gallego did not want represented or maybe he just didn’t like women. Who knows?

I was especially moved by the piece entitled, “Chaos” by Maestro Bartolomé.



This is a piece that stops you, grabs your attention, and blows your mind into pieces. The use of symmetry with the ovals filled with angels and the two mandorlas (large almond-shaped enclosures surrounding Holy figures) with God and “Father Time” inside them speak volumes about the artist’s conception of heaven, Christianity, and God.

I highly recommend anyone taking an hour out of their week or weekend to peruse these secret paintings. The UAMA is open Tuesday – Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Did I mention for UA students and faculty it is completely FREE? Get off your butt and get some art in your life.

For some reason, I felt connected to Gallego’s and Bartolomé’s art because I was able to see their process and therefore I recognized that every artist endures multiple attempts before achieving success. Sometimes you never reach that success, but you continue to try. This deeper connection could also be due to the fact that as I stood in the presence of these works, alone, I felt like these men were sharing their secrets with me. And let’s be honest, the only thing better than telling a secret is being privy to someone else’s dirt.

Shakespeare and the Border

Blog Note: Forced to stay inside all weekend (being a Resident Assistant at the University of Arizona), this week’s blog is all about a movie I watched and reviewed. I highly recommend this film for anyone interested in: arts, Shakespeare, education, or important people making a difference.


Cruising down the aisles of Casa Video on the hunt for a film about the border or the border lifestyle, I passed the intense cowboy dramas and light-hearted comedies, neither of which seemed worthy of my time. Moving to the documentary aisle, I was bombarded with films about anything and everything. My eyes landed on an inconspicuous movie with an appealing title, The Hobart Shakespeareans.



This documentary produced by P.O.V., chronicles a year in the life of one fifth grade class at Hobart Elementary School in central Los Angeles. Teacher Rafe Esquith has been transforming the lives of 10-year-old kids that are traditionally from first generation immigrant Mexican and Korean families through the combination of hard work, love, and Shakespeare.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” said Rafe Esquith in the film, quoting Benjamin Franklin.

All of the children featured in this class didn’t speak English as their first language and English isn’t even the language spoken when they are at home. While most educators and children view this as a hindrance, through the Elizabethan language found within Shakespeare’s texts, the children not only performed at normal competencies but they excelled.

“By learning Shakespeare they are developing a large vocabulary and learning respect for each other,” Esquith said.

The students are not given special treatment because they are dealing with the struggles of learning in English while predominately speaking either Spanish or Korean; in fact Esquith believes all his students should live by two rules.

“Be nice and work hard.”

Esquith’s style incorporates music, art, and sports into the development of these children’s sense of being an American. The success he has had in his more than 20 years of teaching has garnered him a National Medal of Arts accolade in 2003. But for Esquith, the true award is having his students leave their poor neighborhoods and graduate from college. Some of his students have graduated from universities like: Washington and Lee, Princeton, Harvard, UCLA, USC, Yale, and Cornell.

In addition to Shakespeare the children read a diverse collection of literature that Esquith selects so that his students are able to relate to the idea of the struggles of being young and growing up. These fifth graders read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Catcher in the Rye, Lord of the Flies, A Separate Peace, To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, and the biography of Malcolm X.

One of the coolest aspects of this film is the two guest appearances made by popular Shakespearean actors, Michael York and Sir Ian McKellen. In fact, when the children shook hands with McKellen they screeched as if he were the Jonas Brothers.



Director Mel Stuart does an impressive job of telling the story from first hand experiences by the children, their parents, and Esquith all while keeping the film at an easy-to-watch 53 minutes.

After finishing the documentary, I had a few tears forming in the corners of my eyes. To me it is no wonder why Esquith has won so many awards and the film has won multiple film festival accolades. It is because he remains true to his mission of providing quality education to children who are craving for the opportunity to learn.

“I could make more money, but I wouldn’t have a better job.”