El Oro Negro de Oaxaca / The Black Gold of Oaxaca

Dir. Miguel Méndez. México, 2024 I Documentary

The region of Oaxaca is one of the most important artisan production areas in Mexico, heirs of the Mixtec and Zapotec cultures.
The black gold of Oaxaca shows a small part of the history of San Bartolo Coyotepec, the Mexican cradle of black clay, and one of the most outstanding places of production of this type of clay worldwide.
And what is remarkable in Coyotepec is that in the mid-twentieth century its population went from agriculture to handicraft production, and did so in a very creative and artistic way.
From a simple clay found in a mine in the town, a mine that is supposed to be enchanted, and a sophisticated and secret burning technique, the artisans of this town, very marginalized until a few decades ago, have achieved worldwide fame for the beauty and sophistication of their fretworked and burnished pots.