Altars and Offerings: A contemporary milpa

361 Main St., Kentlands, Gaithersburg, MD. 20878 USA

March 16- April 6, 2024

Artists

Altars and Offerings: A contemporary -milpa-

Altars and Offerings: A contemporary milpa uses art strategies to talk about ecofeminism and biodiversity, highlighting the value of food as a source of life. This contemporary milpa honors life and good nutrition. The milpa, a traditional agricultural system in Mesoamerica, which involves the planting of various crops on the same plot, is a powerful symbol of the relationship between nature and humanity.

The metaphor of the seeds as the germ of the future and their connection with the food that sustains our lives is poetic and profound. The choice to present this concept in the form of an altar adds a ritual element of offering, in this case to the goddess Coatlicue.

Coatlicue (snake skirt) was the Aztec goddess in charge of taking care of the Milpa and is the mother goddess of the earth, the mother of the sun and the moon. It is the female version of Ometeotl, god of everything. Coatlicue was also the patron saint of childbirth, fertility, and was associated with war, government, and agriculture. An empowered woman in Mesoamerica.

Recently, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recognized the Mayan milpa as Agricultural Heritage of Humanity. That is why there is nothing better than inviting Talavera Poblana to this feast of life, whose process has in turn been declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (UNESCO) since 2019, and Uriarte as the oldest artisanal workshop in Mexico.

12 women artists participate in this invitation, each one with an intervened plate to sit down to the feast! The inclusion of these elements of contemporary feminism and the intervention of women artists on plates to serve the banquet adds additional layers of information and meaning.

12 Empowered women exploring the importance of an integrated society, working in community in personal care and our society. A fascinating and powerful combination of cultural, ecological, spiritual and feminist elements, in conjunction with the language of contemporary art.

Gabriela Rosso