Oaxacan Woodcarving: The Magic in the Trees

Latin American crafts are special because they're created by people who have a passion for life. They express it in their art with vibrant colors and whimsical expressions.

I sincerely appreciate the work that goes into creating these figures. This book captures all of the above and more.


Not just a picture book, but a book about people...   June 10, 2002
Mark David Dietz (Spring, TX USA)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

I picked this book up just recently and was rather delighted by what I found. Vicki Ragan's photos are lovely, but it is Shepard Barbash's text that is the real delight here. How many of those who buy this book will be like the lady below who, apparently without reading the text, complains that the book does not feature all her favorite artists and all the little alien figures which she is sure are the most important images coming out of Oaxaca?

Please do buy this book, enjoy the lovely pictures, but then read the text. Barbash raises, rather subtlely, the question of whether these woodcarvings are folk art or a response to a commercial demand; he questions whether we are right to put our own "surrealist" readings on these wonderful little figures which are hardly conceived out of some sort of pychological dream matter.

Instead he puts this work into its proper context. These wonderful, brightly colored woodcarvings are the work of individuals with their own stories, hopes and fears -- for whom the incomprehensible wealth and technology of the United States is far more surreal than anything they might produce.

I have one of the cute little aliens the reader below speaks of. They are nice, but superficial beside the personal stories and personal expression that occasionally finds its way into this fascinating art that exists somewhere between folk and commerce.


Informative but disappointing.   October 19, 2000
Janicez (NJ USA)
15 out of 19 found this review helpful

This book is very informative for those interested in learning more about the artists behind the woodcarvings. However it only represents a few of the carvers and the photos while excellent quality will be a disappointment to those who may own or have seen many of the other wonderful carvings that these artists create. The photos seem to concentrate mainly on human style figures and although it does contain quite a few photos of animal figures most are those more on the conventional side. The more elaborate and colorful figures are not represented, neither are some of the more exotic animals like dragons, giraffes, and armadillos. There is nothing at all on the small `alien' monsters which are now considered the trademark emblems of this area. For those wanting a book to show friends just what these artists can do it will be a bit of a disappointment, however since it's the only book available at present there is little choice.