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The fourth installment of Metamofosis Documentation Project’s, “Indigenous Traditions – Biographical Sketches”, a collaboration with the Mexican Consulate in Albuquerque, New Mexico, has been released on YouTube.
This collaboration with the Mexican Consulate in Albuquerque began at the onset of the COVID pandemic in early 2020 as a way to bridge the isolation and to promote a dialogue between Mexican and New Mexican artisans. After a few Zoom conversations (conversatorios), as the pandemic subsided and our frustration grew with difficulties of internet connections in remote areas of Mexico and New Mexico, the project morphed into these Biographical Sketches.
Collaborating with the Mexican Consulate allows the projects to be promoted in the Mexican community in New Mexico and beyond, in hopes of encouraging awareness, pride and support for the traditional arts across borders; helping these communities maintain their ties to their Mexican heritage. This collaboration also allows us to reach local authorities in Mexico to facilitate our work in the communities where these artisans reside and accessing historical and ethnographic information for our research for each specific project.
Artisans are an integral component of contemporary traditional cultures, with their work existing at the intersection of resistance, rescue and innovation.
These projects are windows that allow a view into the lives of remarkable artisans and their cultural roots, hopes and aspirations.
Ignacio Netzahualcoyotl Nava, his brother Pedro and his entire family are examples of the struggle to maintain traditional art and techniques alive. This short film explores how an outstanding individual has

revitalized their family practice and how his achievements and determination are working to revive the weaving traditions of his community of Contla de Juan Cuamatzi, Tlaxcala.
The first film in this series featured Alejandro Guadalupe Garcia, a master wood-worker from the Purhepecha community of Cuanajo, Michoacan.
The second artist featured was the late Elvia Silva Bartolo, a master potter and community activist from the Purhepecha community of Zipiajo, Michoacan. It was presented in Purephecha, the indigenous language of her community; and was published in two versions – one with English subtitles and one with Spanish subtitles.
The third artist featured was Pedro Meza Meza and the cooperative Sna Jolobil of San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas; also with two versions, one with Spanish subtitles (There is some Tseltal in the film) and one with English subtitles.
Also, in 2022 and 2023, in collaboration with the Mexican Consulate in Albuquerque, we created two short videos welcoming the Mexican artists who participated in the International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe, New Mexico. All six of these videos are available on our YouTube Channel.
In 2023, in our support for community institutions that showcase their historic and evolving traditions, we collaborated with the Centro Cultural Comunitario (Community Cultural Center) in Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca to produce a biographical portrait of the late María Vicente Bautista. Locally known as Nan Marie Nnaxh (Maria Chocolate), she was a woman who had made traditional ceremonial chocolate for the community for seventy years, as did her mother and grandmother before her. This work will is featured in a permanent exhibit in the Community Cultural Center.