Moorish Ferns

Vines in green, brown and cobalt blue climb a ceramic ginger jar by Isabelle Collins, who works in the style and technique of classic Talavera pottery. The repetitive motifs reflect the Moorish influence brought from Spain to colonial Mexico. This lidded jar is known in Mexico as a tibor; it was brought to Mexico from the Orient by way of the Philippines in the late 1500s.

'We use the same techniques and styles used in 16th-century Puebla. Classic Talavera used only six colors, all of which were natural glazes compounded at home with mineral pigments. We create our homemade paintbrushes using mule hair or horsehair from the mane or tail, according to the thickness desired for our motifs,' the artisan explains.