Tiburcio Soteno Fernandez and his family are among the main artisan families in the town of Metepec, specializing in popular handcrafted ceramic sculptures called Arboles de la Vida, or Trees of Life.  Metepec is Mexico’s best known centers for producing elaborately designed ceramic handicrafts using traditional techniques to harvest, mold, and paint the clay. 

Lacquering is one of Mexico’s oldest crafts and this is the main source of income for the town.  The Olinala townspeople produce the bold, vibrant colors with minerals extracted from surrounding mountains including natural oils, tecostle, limestone, and charcoal.  The serving trays and boxes are decoratively painted with symbolic figures and ancient mythical designs using deer tails, turkey feathers, or by hand with several patient weeks needed between layers to allow the surfaces to completely dry.  

Alebrijes, brightly colored Mexican folk art sculptures of fantastical creatures, are hand-hewn and painted by the award-winning artist Zeny Fuentes. Each piece is carved from the traditional copal wood and then painted with handmade brushes and maguey cactus thorns. The designs represent the confluence of culture, history, and nature.