Bright colored and hand woven textiles from the Mayan people of Guatemala and southern Mexico are being exhibited at the National Museum of Mexican Art. The textiles, created from the early decades of the 20th century till present day, come from the mosaic of related, but linguistically distinct, groups that make up the Mayan world.
The Maya civilization spans more than 3,000 years in the rain forests and mountains of what is now Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and Belize.
In the centuries from ancient times between the past and present-day Mayan empowerment, generations of women unwearyingly spun cotton, wool and rabbit fur into yarn. Then they dyed the yarn and wove it into multifaceted patterns, which they further embellished with embroidery, brocade and applique.
To show the classic origins of the textile patterns, Pomar and Rivera created an eerie audiovisual display, in which images of ancient Mayan statues, frescoes and bas reliefs appear on facing screens.
Through digital enhancement, the limbs and heads of the images move slightly, as if the ancient kings, consorts and nobles were coming to life.
The exhibition, which runs through May 27, occasionally features demonstrations by some of those weavers. Now nearing the end of its tour, which has included stops in Mexico City, New York, Dallas and San Francisco, the collection is destined for a permanent home in a former convent in San Cristobal de las Casas in the Mexican state of Chiapas.
Source: CNN
