Artesano Copper Imports is dedicated to promoting the
craft of hand hammered copper and to enhancing the lives of
the individual artisans. We pay the artisans a fair price for
their work and provide tools and materials to assist them in
the creation of their pieces. For our customers, we provide
biographical information and a photo of each artisan, brochures
that summarize the history and process of the craft, and additional
educational materials.
Artesano Copper Imports buys
directly from ten different families of artisans in the village
of Santa Clara del Cobre, Michoacán, Mexico. We carefully
select work for the beauty of the design and for high quality
craftsmanship. Most of the pieces that we sell are signed by
the artisans and are limited editions.
Background
Santa Clara del Cobre (copper)
is the foremost site in Mexico, perhaps in the world, for the
fabrication of hammered copper vessels. The artisans from Santa
Clara have been invited to teach their craft and exhibit their
work in museums and galleries around the world. The family of
artisan Bricio Pureco Farfán was recently featured on
the PBS special “The Desert Speaks”.
In Mexico the tradition of hammered copper
or “cobre martillado” dates back to pre-Columbian
times. The Purépecha Indians of Michoacán (the
primary indigenous group in the Santa Clara del Cobre region)
have fabricated tools, weapons, jewelry, animal effigies, and
figurines out of copper for over 500 years. Originally the copper
came from above ground copper mines in Michoacán.
The
Process
Today the artisans use recycled copper to make
their vessels. They buy scrap copper wire from the electric
company and melt it into copper ingots. The ingots, which look
like hard fat pancakes, are heated and hand hammered repeatedly
until the sides begin to rise. The artisans then begin the laborious
process of shaping the piece.
No soldering, casting, or molds are used in
this process, and because of this, each vessel is unique. Instead
the artisans use homemade hammers, anvils, and stakes. They
slowly coax the hard metal into taking a form by first softening
it with fire and then placing the piece on a stake and hand
hammering until the piece begins to harden. This process is
repeated over and over again until the desired shape is achieved.
There are now over 200 workshops in Santa Clara
del Cobre dedicated to producing hand hammered copper work.
The workshops are connected to the artisans’ homes and
are generally shared by the extended family. The workshops are
very active places with a range of young to old people working
the copper.
|
