We are interested in expanding the possibilities of our creations, generating different worlds and telling new stories that, at the same time, help us to continue sharing our culture and traditions.

The Jacobo y María Ángeles Workshop has always looked for ways to innovate and to be at the forefront of the profession. After years of perfecting the techniques of carving and decoration, and the involvement of our son, Ricardo Ángeles, our concepts and creativity have matured, allowing the production to be conceived through collections, and not only from individual pieces. These series complexify the way in which the pieces relate to each other, to their context, to a theme,
and even to a story.

Something we have had very clear since the 90’s has been the understanding of our work as art, thinning the line that differentiates art from craftsmanship. The idea of generating collections has brought us even closer to refining this aspect, together with the construction of a gallery space in the workshop and in our headquarters, complemented with the appropriate display devices and lighting, which results in an impeccable presentation of all our work.

01

Behind a mask

For several years, Jacobo and María Ángeles have been promoting the town’s carnival by recovering its vernacular elements. This is a collection that seeks to raise awareness of the tradition, while incorporating its aesthetic vision, in which the masks stand out as the result of an anthropological, cultural and artistic process.

02

Eternal Rest

03

Siblings of the earth

Wood and stone can be inert materials. Human action – but also cosmic and natural processes – are capable of giving form to elements that seem to rest in an eternal sleep. From “a glance”, the craftsman is capable of finding the image of an extinct animal on the branch of a fallen tree, of multiplying the visual senses in which a trunk can derive, of chiseling and figuring in stone the tides of images that inhabit his mind.

04

Plague

The Jacobo and María Ángeles workshop presents “Plaga”, a sharply reflective collection that dwells between the limits of what we consider beautiful and what we passionately reject as unpleasant. The anxious or repellent effect commonly produced by insects considered pests is nullified by the meticulous details of Zapotec iconography, silver details and gold leaf finishes that adorn these crunchy bugs carved from copal wood.

05

Nomads

Collection that represents three years of work and effort. It presents a vision of a dystopian future where science merges with Zapotec ancestral beliefs; genetically experimenting with humans and mixing them with animal characteristics, going against nature with the aim of achieving greater longevity, resistance and adaptation to the land, in order to face the adversities that migration brings.

06

Guardians

The Jacobo y María Ángeles Workshop created two “Guardians” to inhabit New York City with the mission of accompanying and protecting all Latin American, Mexican and Oaxacan migrants who live or are about to arrive in the United States in search of a better future for their families. These two monumental figures are part of the narrative of the NOMADS collection.

07

Hurakán

Hurakán refers to the deity of the storm, a word of Mayan origin that describes one of
the most complex natural phenomena. A one-legged creature that imposingly
approaches the surface, impetuously moving the wind with its arms, and sustaining
itself from the sea with its claw. This exhibition by Jacobo and María Ángeles seeks to
translate this idea, paying tribute to this fearsome but kindly god. With its
multiplicity of presences and affectations, is shown to us once again from the
instance of the implausible.

08

Pelota Mixteca

It’s dawn. It is Sunday, and when the Sun is at its zenith, the Commitment begins. The sacred space is carefully marked with chalk by the Chacero. The 10 players grouped in two quintas offer their respects to the Coime before entering the Pasajuego. “Va de buenas!” shouts El Chacero excitedly. When the ball is in the air, eternity is present. Its path is deflected by a formidable glove that prevents it from falling to the ground. Pelota Mixteca is a practice for people with common sense in the community sense, their identities are twinned in the duality of the ancestral game: ritual and sport.

09

Jaguars

The pieces exhibited below present a novelty in forms and strategies. The intervention of these figures reveals from the outside, almost in a brutalist way, their wooden structure carved in ironwood. This respect for the background allows us to appreciate the materiality of the wood itself, allowing its conception as part of the range, not only of colors, but also of possible textures. . Each piece is decorated with gold leaf applications, visually highlighting the symbolic elegance of the jaguar.

10

Tuneo

The automobile is the vehicle par excellence. That machine that gives us the possibility to move spatially, but also to involve us in various types of symbolism, whether status, identity, among others. From the idea that we ourselves build and modify reality through interventions in our context and possessions. The Jacobo y María Ángeles workshop has decided to get involved in the tuning, the intervention of various objects and in the contribution to the reconstruction and appropriation of reality to make it more personal, less strange.

11

From the ground

From the ground is a collection based on the idea of preserving and treasuring. The series consists of various miniature animals of the wildlife of San Martin Tilcajete, whether they are present or extinct. On the other hand, there is a category of animal fusions, which are larger than the rest of the figures in the series. As a tribute, they are immortalized to remember them in the future.

12

Night owls

Among the branches of the trees, protected by the twilight of the night, the owls nest, solitary. A collection composed of nine pieces of these nocturnal birds, which open their wings, stare into the eyes, and after a long  day, finally fly home.

13

Zapotec Calendar

14

Pachangas

In this endless celebration, the monkeys, so loving of themselves and their friends,
laugh, embrace and cuddle with each other. An unusual setting where behavior is defined solely by the guideline of pleasures. These joyful primates teach us a very important lesson: how sexuality is an essential part of our nature.

15

Nahual Heart