Centre Street Building, Level 2A
Itzpapalotl by Edgar Reyes is on view in Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano.
Effigy Vessel in the Form of Cociyo (God of Rain and Thunder) or an Ancestor Personified as Cociyo (year), the 20th-century ceramic object on view alongside Edgar Reyes’s work, looks like effigy vessels made by the Zapotec culture of Oaxaca, Mexico (ca. 500‒700 CE). These ceramics were originally used in ceremonies to honor ancestors. Due to their rarity, cultural value, and beauty, ancient objects like this are in high demand by individual art collectors and museums. This has led to the fabrication of urns assembled from genuine ancient fragments or made entirely from scratch. This vessel likely has many modern parts, but its mimicry of the features of ancient Zapotec urns was a source of inspiration for Reyes’s Itzpapalotl.
Artist Statement
Every time I get to travel back to my birthplace of Guadalajara, Mexico, I have to visit one of the many tianguis (open-air markets) where my extended family have stands selling food and produce. I enjoy connecting with vendors who have specialized in cultural antiquities. People can acquire sacred pieces that are thousands of years old or contemporary objects that are fabricated in an almost identical pre-Hispanic manner. For decades artisans have created replicas as a means of survival and institutions have acquired beautiful pieces that they later learn are fakes.
The civil unrest of the Mexican Revolution (1910‒1920) and the rise of commercial air travel provided cover for treasures to leave Mexico at an alarming rate. The demand for historical items and greed of opportunistic collectors have fueled a practice of forgery and smuggling that continues to this day.