Hands Around the World

Andes Mountains Featured Artists

Beatriz Buceta is a very talented ceramics artist living in the Andes mountains. She originally came to Venezuela from Argentina, when Venezuela was the land of promise due to their oil fields.  Unfortunately the government mismanaged their resources and Venezuela is now one of the poorest countries in South America. Beatriz makes beautiful clay sculptures as well as pottery.

Createrra Pottery - Mabel Pinzon is the owner of Createrra Ceramics. Her pottery studio is high in the Andes Mountains of South America. She does unusual and creative work with clay that is very sculptural in nature. She enjoys working with her hands and feels that any kind of art is good therapy. She also loves nature and is inspired by the beautiful surroundings of her Andes mountain home.

Goza Pottery - Maria LaCruz is from the Andes Mountains of Venezuela. She began helping in a potters studio called Goza Pottery and ended up as its owner. She has run the operation for eleven years. She makes fanciful bells, plates, and crucifixes in a colorful, naive style. Some of her larger bells can made into beautiful and unusual hanging lamps.

Leonor Lezama is a ceramics artist living and working in the Andes Mountains in Venezuela. She is originally from Uruguay. She uses natural motifs such as leaves in her work. She is also inspired by Oriental Art.

CarmenMorales is a pottery artist working in the Andes Mountains of Venezuela. She makes wonderfully detailed an whimsical figures. Her specialties are nativities, angels, and crucifixes, including some of the delightfully tiniest ones you will ever see!

MucugresPottery - The Mucugres Studio is comprised of five sisters and brothers who run a pottery studio high in the Andes Mountains of Venezuela. Ines Camas started the operation with her unique pottery designs inspired by pre-Columbian Art. The pottery is hand made using a slab technique and is glazed in earth tones. Her pottery became so popular that her sister and three brothers joined the studio. Their operation now provides employment for many residents of the tiny Andes town in which they live. Ines' designs are recognized by the Tayo symbol. Her sisters mark is Fagua and the three brothers are Jeku, Tawadi, and Jochi.

Mariano Rangel is a wood carver living high in the Andes Mountains of South America. The Rangel family has become well known all over the country for their naive style wood carvings. He and his family have been wood carvers for many years and has several brothers who also carve. Mariano is one of the most well-known of the Rangel family artists. He hand carves figures such as angels and nativity scenes from wood. Mariano is in his seventies and his immediate family all make their living in his woodworking shop - children and grandchildren helping to sand and paint his creations. His figures are carved from a type of willow wood. The back of the figures are left with the natural bark. The carved area may be left natural or painted in bright folk art colors. Mariano's sculptures are wonderful pieces of collectible folk art.

Mariano Rangel

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