Color Me Happy!

Between 2001 and 2005 we spent numerous vacations in Oaxaca, Mexico, a paradise for artists and lovers of folk art. We have friends in Oaxaca who own an art school, where Daniel would teach watercolor painting or children's book illustration. And of course we'd combine that with a vacation! On every one of our trips we were accompanied by friends and family and always had the best time!
At first I was nervous about going to Mexico, because while I speak English, German and some French, I don't speak Spanish, but I've never felt safer and more welcomed anywhere than I felt in Oaxaca.

In 2006 we were busy with our move to Savannah and later that year, a teacher strike for higher wages turned violent and it wasn't safe for tourists for a while. Then we got busy settling into our life in Georgia, but now we are ready to go back sometime in the not too distant future. We felt the connection with this beautiful place and its gentle people right away, and it will be one of those spots we will visit again and again.
We discovered the colorful clay figures by the Aguilar sisters on our first visit to Oaxaca and fell in love with Josefina's work. On each of our trips, we would travel to their village of Ocotlan de Morelos (it was also home to the amazing artist Rudolfo Morales) and bring home a few more of her colorful creations. On our last trip, Daniel even had Josefina do a special order for us of the two nuns...
The whole extended Aguilar family lives together in a very humble home and everyone makes clay figures, each in their own style.
Daniel took this last picture on our third or fourth trip to Oaxaca, this time over Christmas. I am sitting in front of a creche with fairly large figures created by the Aguilar family!
We brought back many different pieces of folk art from Oaxaca and if you are interested, I'll share some with you from time to time...

P.S. My sweet friend and neighbor gave me the gorgeous flowers you see in the first two pictures for my birthday. They were from her garden and still look beautiful and happy after three days!

P.P.S. There still is time to enter my giveaway before I draw the name of the lucky winner Monday morning. Simply click here.