The ruins of Chichen Itza
I spent Christmas in the Yucatan with my girlfriend – designer Norisol Ferrari. We were dying to see Chichen Itza and had planned our trip around these ancient ruins. Most of the shops in this part of Mexico are the typical tourist traps, but Norisol and I had done a little research and identified a brilliant dealer of Mexican craftwork in Playa Del Carmen, about 45 minutes away from Cancun. The shop – Casa Ines – is what story books are made of. Owned and run by a relocated Spaniard who fell in love with a Mexican woman – the shop is brimming with brilliant crafts, furniture and textiles from artisans around Mexico.
We fell in love with two pieces. The first, was a wool shawl made in northern Mexico by the women in two families in a remote village who have been making handwoven and decorated clothing for more than a century. The piece is incredible: every character was painstakingly sewn and each is different. Amazing! The shawl tells a story of their village and it really shows the power and emotion that a unique and special material can elicit.
The second was a beaded Jaguar made by Huichol artisans in West Central Mexico. The colors and the textures are magnificent.
We then headed out to complete the journey to Chichen Itza. Truly a moving experience to see the incredible mathematical precision that the Mayans used to construct their buildings. At the fringe of the main temple grounds, there is a wall of carved skulls. It reminded me that the trend of the past few years to include skull imagery in materials isn’t that new after all! ♥
