An artisan proposes a dialogue with ancient pottery to teach us how to live better today.

▲ We can bring people closer to what these pieces truly mean. They can move us, move us, inspire us, and generate a reaction on our part , the artist reflected in a conversation with this newspaper. Photo courtesy of the ENC.

Omar González Morales

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, June 2, 2025, p. 2

Argentine master Victoria Morando Espiaut brings to Mexico a unique perspective on the role of ancient pottery in contemporary societies, seeking to offer a profound reflection on the connection between the past and the present.

Invited to this country by the National School of Ceramics (ENC) as part of workshops focused on the study of Argentine pottery techniques, Morando Espiaut spoke in an interview with La Jornada about the importance of recognizing the ancient pieces created by indigenous peoples and the legacy they left behind, not only in their working techniques but also as the roots of modern humanity.

I offer my students my understanding of ceramics and the creative process I use to create it. I was influenced by the work of the indigenous peoples of my country and analyzed the work process in Argentina, but in a sensitive way, as a link between what we do and the work of those who came before us , he commented.

Regarding her work method, she explained: "I don't use any machines. I collect the clay by hand and prepare it in jars with water. I pour it, and we flatten it with our feet. Once the clay is ready, we mold the piece and polish it with stones. I built the kiln in which I work myself, and the firing takes five hours. Afterward, I cover the pieces with sawdust and reduce them, which leaves them black, or I modify the color. Finally, I polish them with beeswax ."

He made it clear that the intention of seeking to replicate ancestral techniques is based not only on copying, but on merging with the cosmogonic vision, "a way of transcending time and making a vessel by 'taking the spirit' that generates it and doing so in the present. We take and reshape that memory; that's what motivates me to shape a vessel."

We have to understand that there are ways, we have to respect that current of work, understand that we are building on knowledge passed down from those who came before us; this is something that can't be found in a book or a manual. I want to offer it with that respect and that courage.

An analysis of cultural appropriation

For Victoria Morando, the northwest, Catamarca, Salta, Jujuy, and Tucumán are the areas where ceramics developed in Argentina. This is the area near the mountain range, where cultures developed that produced ceramic pieces of great depth and refined craftsmanship, such as guada.

It's clear that their way of working can't be fully deciphered, as those cultures disappeared around 900 AD, but their pieces remain, where they captured their iconography, their ceramic remains, and they explain their worldview. That's how I got my start in ceramics, although I currently focus on the work from the settlements in the Córdoba mountains, where I live , said Morando Espiaut.

I don't feel separated from those cultures; by trying to connect with this heritage, I seek to connect with that origin. Through these pieces, we achieve a dialogue that is like repairing what was broken; ceramics works like that; it's reclaiming that language so it can live on.

Morando Espiaut said that Mexico has a great cultural diversity, which allows for the study of many pottery vestiges whose techniques persist and which need to be better understood: "We don't want them to be in display cases or forgotten. We need them to be accessible to the public and support the circulation of these pieces created by the heirs of the indigenous peoples; this has become very important in my country ."

For Victoria Morando, leaving the pieces as mere archaeological remains limits the potential for understanding them: "Locked in a glass case, I feel like they're relegated to an abandoned past; we don't allow people to see them as living elements created through processes that influenced our present."

"I feel we can bring people closer to what these pieces truly mean. We can move us, move us, inspire us, and generate a reaction on our part. I'm very drawn to the origin; that's what these pieces represent to me—not to copy it, but to understand it and transcend those teachings into our daily lives ," the artist commented.

She mentioned that she drew a lot of influence from the talks of Peruvian anthropologist and archaeologist Ruth Shady: "Her approach to studying and analyzing these ancient cultures can improve the lifestyle of our current societies. She proposes returning to our past, understanding it, and exploring things that can teach us how to live better."

“Through vestiges, we know that many cultures lived in balance with nature because they felt connected to an order, to a cosmos, and when that was disrupted, they disappeared or dispersed. That awareness is something that has been lost: 'Who am I? Who are we? What are we doing and where are we going?' We have to ask ourselves that.”

The ceramist believed that today, humans act individually, and that this combination of actions builds the world we live in, resulting in a massive destruction of the Earth. That's the world today, and we have to change it .

▲ For this exhibition, objects dating from 600 BC to 1500 AD were selected from research projects carried out in Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, and Guerrero, reported Eliseo Padilla Gutiérrez, curator and researcher of the MNA's Western Cultures gallery. Photo: Carmen Mondragón / INAH

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, June 2, 2025, p. 3

The exhibition "Ceramics, Voices of Ancient Clay, " organized by the National Museum of Anthropology (MNA) and the Center for Mexican and Central American Studies (Cemca), built a bridge toward understanding the significance of clay objects, from their discovery in archaeological excavations to their restoration and museographic treatment, as well as their importance as a source of information for understanding past societies.

The exhibition, located in the Temporary Exhibition Hall A1 of that venue, brought together more than 70 pre-Hispanic pieces, including vessels, figurines, ear ornaments, and utensils for everyday and ritual use from western Mexico.

The curator and researcher of the MNA's Western Cultures gallery, Eliseo Padilla Gutiérrez, noted that for this exhibition, objects dating from the Preclassic and Postclassic periods—from 600 BC to 1500 AD—were selected, originating from research projects carried out in Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, and Guerrero.

Furthermore, these pre-Columbian pieces interact with 20th-century ceramic objects, demonstrating how the process of creating a vessel in present-day communities allows us to understand how vessels were made in ancient times. This allows the public to contrast the similarities between a granular white amphora from the Xochipala site in Guerrero, dating from 300-400 AD, and the pottery produced today in the town of Ameyaltepec, for example.

The exhibition was curated by Padilla himself and Véronique Darras, an archaeologist associated with Cemca, and begins with a small but eloquent work: the figurine of a potter holding a vessel (200-400 AD), recovered from excavations in Bolaños Canyon.

UNAM Collaboration

The expert commented that all these materials were obtained in controlled archaeological excavations, which provides information about how ancient cultures lived and thought, and their styles, allowing us to differentiate cultures, date sites, and discover their uses.

Meanwhile, methods such as petrographic and chemical analysis help identify the materials and pigments used, revealing their origins and manufacturing techniques.

Analysis reveals that the red pigment comes from a mineral called hematite, sometimes mixed with it, which gives the pieces their shine. The white color was achieved with clays such as kaolinite and montmorillonite, while the black and brown tones come from iron and manganese oxides.

To obtain this data, we had the collaboration of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, through the National Laboratory of Sciences for the Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage, coordinated by Dr. José Ruvalcaba Sil, who provided the Non-Destructive X-ray Analysis System. This equipment allows the identification of chemicals present in the decorations and in the materials of the ceramics such as iron, calcium and silicon.

The exhibition Ceramics, Voices of Ancient Clay concluded yesterday.

▲ The concerts were held Saturday and Sunday at the Blas Galindo Auditorium at Cenart and the Los Pinos Cultural Complex. Photo: Bernardo Mijangos/Cenart

Angel Vargas

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, June 2, 2025, p. 4

There should be no politics in music, according to conductor Enrique Arturo Diemecke: Not, at least not in the sense we understand it. Orchestras, as human groups, are political. But here things are different, and they do work. We all work together harmoniously for a common and supreme good: music .

The composer and violinist, also a composer, responded in this way to a humorous provocation that followed his comment about a political figure. "It's just that I belong to a different party; the truth is, I'm not a member of any ," he explained with a laugh, setting the friendly tone that would characterize the rest of the interview with La Jornada.

Considered one of the most important conductors in our country, Diemecke visited Mexico City this weekend to conduct, as a guest, the Carlos Chávez School Orchestra (OECCh), part of the National System for the Promotion of Music.

The student group prepared the program "Of Myths and Legends," featuring "A Night on the Dry Mountain" by Modest Mussorgsky and "Symphony Fantastique" by Hector Berlioz. The concerts took place on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, in the Blas Galindo Auditorium of the National Center for the Arts (Cenart) and the Los Pinos Cultural Complex.

Although musical training isn't something he's been able to pursue throughout his career as often as he'd like, he said it's very important for the conductor to work with budding musicians or young students, as is the case with the atrium players who make up the aforementioned group.

I learn too, not just young people. We have to learn everything in life. We must come with the idea that it's a school; if we learn poorly, it stays that way , he indicated.

We must learn to do things well. For example, to control the momentum at certain moments and, sometimes, when the work warrants it, let it flow. We must always keep in mind that the music comes first; it always comes first.

He elaborated: “I really enjoy working with youth orchestras because they are growing musicians. Everything you tell them must convey that message of learning and retention, something that must be applied when needed. It's very satisfying to see their growth, their dedication, their enthusiasm, and the adrenaline rush of youth.”

That's why it's a privilege to participate in their training; the results are seen almost immediately. Whenever I have the opportunity to participate in situations like these, I leave feeling happy and fulfilled, because I, too, have grown and strengthened my knowledge.

He indicated that when working with a professional orchestra, these types of experiences serve, above all, to remove stagnation, so that the musicians continue to feel fresh in the need to be professional and perform a work as if it were the first time or, better said, the last .

Good musical educational structure in Mexico

Among other things, Diemecke acknowledged advances in current musical education in Mexico, contrasting it with his time as an apprentice, where access, he asserted, was limited, and music, rather than a profession, was seen as a trade.

“There were no youth orchestras in the country in those years. Many of us trained at home: we came from musical families, and we got our instruments from our parents, relatives, or friends. There were no institutions—like the current System for Musical Development—where one could receive a scholarship to study and pursue this discipline,” he explained.

We had to work to help the family get ahead and become professionals at a very young age. For example, I did it at 13, in the Guanajuato Orchestra. I want to clarify that it wasn't child exploitation; no one forced me; it was something I longed for.

In his opinion, the contrast with today is striking: Today, young people have educational structures, scholarships, and specialized teachers. They arrive at professional auditions better prepared, with the orchestral repertoire already studied .

Diemecke welcomed the existence of more music education institutions in the country: "That's why we have more orchestras and more young musicians with a learned repertoire for these groups. In my time, we all aspired to be soloists; now it's understood that playing in an orchestra is an art in itself ."

Regarding his work leading the Michoacán Symphony Orchestra, of which he has been artistic director since late 2023, he noted that he is currently in a very exciting phase of work and undergoing a renewal process.

It's been a very interesting approach. There are very good musicians in Michoacán, as well as a good audience. So, there's great interest on their part in keeping the orchestra alive and moving forward.

He emphasized that, currently, one of the priorities has been to fill vacant positions, in addition to achieving a balanced schedule.

It's about not always presenting the same old favorites and the same programming. I've introduced many new works, but always keeping at least one traditional piece in the programs, so that the audience isn't scared off, so that they know they'll have a balance between the new and the traditional. So, I think we're on the right track , he concluded.

▲ Maestro Diemecke at the head of the OECCh, during the program "Of Myths and Legends." Photo by Ángel Vargas

Angel Vargas

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, June 2, 2025, p. 4

The Blas Galindo Auditorium at the National Center for the Arts (Cenart) became a place of the unusual last Saturday.

Under the wise baton of guest conductor Enrique Arturo Diemecke, the Carlos Chávez School Orchestra (OECCh) embarked on a unique sonic journey through unexpected times and places with the program "Of Myths and Legends," which was repeated yesterday at the Los Pinos Cultural Complex.

It was a kind of musical exorcism in which mountain demons and hallucinated lovers danced to the rhythm of the notes of A Night on the Barren Mountain, by the Russian Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881), and The Fantastic Symphony, by the French Hector Berlioz (1803-1869).

A captivating experience for the audience, which filled almost three-quarters of the venue and enjoyed the feverish vitality of the young members of the group for nearly an hour and a half, guided by the composure, knowledge, and intensity of that mature Mexican director, one of the most important figures in national music today.

For every musician, it is always a privilege to share what they love most in life: music , Diemecke commented in a brief intervention, microphone in hand, before raising the baton for the first time and beginning that sort of spell made up of that pair of works that have to do with the supernatural.

It sounds corny, I know, but music is food for the soul. And it is because our spirit is always full of anxieties, worries, love, passion, dedication, happiness, and sadness, and we need something to help us balance all of that. That's where music comes in.

Mussorgsky's work was a sonorous witches' sabbath. The brass spewed flames, the strings cast disturbing shadows. Diemecke, like a shaman, drew from the young performers an infernal crescendo that culminated in redemptive bells.

"That evil mountain teaches us that after the storm comes calm, that nothing is lost ," the director announced at the beginning. The audience, ecstatic, burst into applause at the end of the piece.

Berlioz's Opium Dream

After a brief intermission, the psychedelic journey of the Symphonie Fantastique began. Beforehand, Diemecke took the microphone to tell the anecdote about this work. Berlioz, heartbroken by love, attempted suicide by taking opium, but dreamed of his own death, he recounted.

The work was a dreamlike journey of five movements in which the strings and woodwinds went from sigh to cry, the brass led to brilliant moments, and there was also a passage in which the English horn and oboe emulated the dialogue of two shepherds in the field.

Furthermore, a march led the way from the scaffold to the guillotine, and the Gregorian dies irae (song of anger) mingled with the laughter of the witches to conclude this bizarre experience in this way.

The audience, somewhere between astonished and still enthralled, reacted festively to such a powerful and accomplished performance, with thunderous applause. The young musicians thus demonstrated that they have managed to form a cohesive, balanced, and powerful orchestra.

Diemecke, true to his passionate style, conducted both works from memory, without a score; nor did he use a baton. He inhabited the music and let it inhabit him, based on his signature choreography, in which the marvelous sound becomes ductile material that he molds between his hands and the rest of his body, with showy movements that range from the subtle to the dizzying.