Tree of Life/ Arbol de la Vida

Mexican Narrative Sculpture History of Ceramics in Olmec Civilization

• 1500 BCE - 800 AD • Gulf Coast • Baby figurines – Slab construction – Hollow – Unknown meaning and usage

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/images/h2/h2_1979.206.1134.jpg • No wheel to make • Coil and pinch construction • Variety of surface decoration techniques

http://0.tqn.com/d/pottery/1/0/z/6/-/-/MAOlmec_bottle.jpg http://www.trocadero.com/stores/ruyistudio/items/869282/pict.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6e/Tlapacoya_Bowl.PNG Civilization

• 100 BCE - 800 AD • Basin of Mexico region () • Utilized mold-making techniques • Used motifs from Olmec pottery http://www.flickr.com/photos/darktimespress/4076454140/

http://www.mesoweb.com/lords/media2/death07.jpg http://www.propylaia.org/isisimages/images/img/2623-Six%20Men%20%28350AD,%20Teotihuacan,%20Puebla%29.JPG http://www.maya-archaeology.org/Teotihuacan_Tiquisatearcheology/Tiquisate_REglyph_globular.jpg Casa Grande/

• 100 AD to 1360 AD • polychrome ceramics with geometric patterns • located in northwestern Mexico in the modern- day Mexican state of Chihuahua

http://www.bookservices.com/pottery/pot125.jpg http://www.galleriaelegante.com/images/MO-LVEO-002-00.JPG http://cdn1.iofferphoto.com/img/item/203/255/454/fsTo.jpg Aztec Civilization

• from 1325 AD to 1521 AD • used red and orange clay to make plates, cups, pots and jugs • the most varied of ceramics in Mexican culture http://mexicanhistory.org/aztecpottery2.jpg http://www.veranda.com/cm/veranda/images/on-exhibit-aztec-field-museum-6-0309_LG-86661585.jpg Spanish Influence

• : a type of • Tiles in the Moorish style • Still produced today in the city of

Tree of Life

• Large ceramic sculpture with a lot of detailed sculptural pieces • Brightly decorated with paint • Often tells a story or links to cultural tales, beliefs or customs Ceiba- Sacred Tree of

It was believed that the branches reached up to heaven, the roots reached down into the underworld, And the trunk was in the present world. •An example of Axis Mundi (link between “heaven”, earth, and http://projectseres.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/ceiba-21-300x225.jpg “underworld” -Spines on trunk of young used as a motif in Mayan pottery and ceramics http://www.tropical-plants-flowers-and-decor.com/images/ceibaTreeThorns.jpg http://revuemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/01-f02-ceiba-pottery.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zyDoJwYaeXM/THAVxNp5CyI/AAAAAAAAA9M/vz4V5AvLK7c/s1600/Arbol%2520de%2520la%2520vida.jpg • Trees of Life often tell stories of the creation of the world • With the arrival of the Spanish, biblical creation stories were depicted through the Tree of Life • Adam & Eve http://www.mexicanceramic.com/folk/folk1.htm • • History of Mexico • History of Mexico • Dias de los Muertos theme