Thursday, November 15, 2012

Is this an arpillera or not?


Those familiar with Ana Darcy's blog will know her fascination with folk arts and folk toys. Apparently there are similar features among the people of her own planet, Thomo--similar, but different, of course, given the variations of human cultures.

We have shown many examples of the lovely textile sculptures of the Americas, called arpilleras in Spanish. Here is yet another one...we think. Maybe. The arpilleras shown on other pages of this blog maintained for the extraterrestrial Ana are all entire compositions, pictures, as it were, usually with a theme of some kind, often moral.

The example above is not like that. It's a collection of 32 handmade fabric dolls which in other contexts could be members of a classic arpillera. Whether it's an arpillera or not, we can agree that it's a striking piece of art. (It was created in Honduras.)

To better show the three-dimensional character of this bag, here's a photo from one side:


Both photos are generously sized to show details. Merely click either one for a much better look. The X in the top right corner will bring you back to Ana's blog.





There is much more of Ana's favorite art in the column to the right, under the photo of the blue-eyed kitty, including molas, murals, clothing, dia de los muertos figurines, and folk toys to name just a few!

NOTE: There is a great deal of art, poetry, music, architecture and the like on Ana's blog, yet the Distant Cousin stories do not dwell on these. They tell the tale of the first human to return to Earth. The fact that that human loves our art, music, and so forth is celebrated here, but to enjoy Ana herself and learn to know her well, you should try one of her books!