PILSEN — The National Museum of Mexican Art’s three-day art festival, the Mercado Navideño, begins Friday.
This is the 20th year for the curated show, which features handmade items from all over Mexico, including Loom woven textiles from San Cristobal de las Casas, ceramic Day of the Dead figures from Puebla and paintings from Xalitla, Guerrero.
Small carved animals from folk artist Jacobo Ángeles Ojeda will sell for $20 apiece. Ojeda, from Oaxaca, has been carving for 20 years, and many of his pieces have sold for over $4,000, according to museum spokeswoman Diane Laux. These carvings, known as “Alebrijes,” are a tradition from his hometown San Martin Tilcajete and are shaped like coyotes, jaguars, dogs, porcupines and iguanas.
Nativities and ornaments are also popular sellers, according to Laux, and the museum will have plenty of both. You can find clay, wood and tin nativities at the museum, with the tin ones ranging $20 to $70. The tin, yarn, and straw ornaments – which range from $1 to $15 – come directly from artists in the Mexican states of Oaxaca, Michoacán, Jalisco and Guerrero.
The festival runs Friday through Sunday, from 10-5 p.m. Admission is free and complimentary hot chocolate, coffee and pastries will be served. Museum members also receive 30 percent off of all merchandise during the festival. For more information, visit the National Museum of Mexican Art’s website.
