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Oct. 4, 2005 - Issue 63
News and Features about Puerto Vallarta on Mexico´s Gold Coast
Tips and Topics on Living in Your Own Dream Location
[Go to the Archives]
CONTENTS:
• ANOTHER HIT BY MOTHER NATURE
• THE SEASON KICKS OFF
• RUBEN GARCIA, CONTEMPORARY MURALIST
• EDUCATION FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
ANOTHER HIT BY MOTHER NATURE
As we watched the news coverage of Hurricane Rita, we could not believe that yet another terrible storm was hitting the already ravaged Gulf Coast. Rita made a direct hit on my city of residence for 20 years, Beaumont, Texas, and also Port Arthur. Before moving to Mexico, I had businesses in both those cities, but fortunately I no longer have property there. My sympathy goes out to all who lost so much in those storms, and hope that the clean up and rebuilding will be quick. Let´s hope that Mother Nature will not hit the US again anytime soon, and also that the authorities have learned some lessons in fast and orderly evacuation in case of further emergencies. Let´s pray that the terrorists will stop their senseless bombings of innocent people, such as in Bali, and that somehow this group of power-mad people who murder in the name of religion can be stopped.
THE SEASON KICKS OFF
Hope is in the air that the upcoming season will be a great one, and that tourists will flock to this wonderful city to enjoy our climate, culture and cuisine. We already have seen several cruise ships docking here this month, even though their passengers are controlled by their planned tours, which give no time to explore our Old Town area and find the best shopping, galleries and fine restaurants, especially in the areas off the Malecon. Let´s hope that the cruise lines will realize what their clients are missing by their current practices.
Galeria Dante started off the art season early with a show of erotic art by a number of area artists. There was also an erotic exhibition at City Hall. This was part of a tour by a Lifestyle group, who plan erotic art shows in various parts of the world.
All the central galleries are busy getting ready for the first Old Town Art Walk, which will be on October 26, from 6-10 pm. Seventeen galleries will participate this season including Galeria Uno, Galeria Arte Latinoamericano, Galeria Pacifico, Corsica Galeria, Leonardo Galeria, Galeria Vallarta, Galeria Corona, Beatriz Narváez, Galeria LaNana, Galeria des Artistes, Galeria Omar Alonso, Galeria 8 y mas, Galeria Arte Popular Mexicana, Galeria de Ollas, Galeria Nelly, Galeria Portus, and Sergio Bustamante.
Galeria Vallarta will show abstract Oils by Jesús Real Ruiz and Day of the Dead themes by Nicolas de Jesus and others.
Our brochure map and guide will be ready soon so everyone can locate and visit the art walk galleries. Even if you miss the cocktail opening, you can always tour the galleries during regular hours, since the exhibits last from one to two weeks.
Claudia Nery, one of Galeria Vallarta´s top artists, has been invited to do an exposition at the Four Seasons Hotel in Punta de Mita from October 13 to Nov 10th. Her beautiful paintings will be on display for their guests only, but she has also sent us some new works for Galeria Vallarta in advance of her February 1st show.
At Galeria Vallarta, we will be doing some remodeling during the first part of October, so if you find us closed in front, try the side entrance on Guerrero Street, as we have a great selection and sale prices upstairs. Also you can make special appointments by calling 221-5126 or visit our Plaza Marina location next to McDonald´s.
RUBEN GARCIA MENDOZA, CONTEMPORARY MURALIST
Ruben Garcia Mendoza, whose paintings form a permanent part of the collection of Galeria Vallarta has recently created more impressive murals, in addition to those that he was chosen to create in the University of Guadalajara campus in Ixtapa, Jal. (on the outskirts of Puerto Vallarta) which represent the dynamics of the Vallarta region. His most recent commission in 2005 was for two murals for Morton College in Cicero, Illinois. More information about these murals will be released later.
In 2004 he created a huge mural (five by eight meters) gracing the entrance to the Museum of Paleontology in Guadalajara, Jalisco. Working with 3 other artists, Homer Regla, Aramis Colunga and Rita Vega, Ruben created the mural to represent animal species which inhabited this exact area millions of years ago. Of the 32 species which are included in this work of art are: sabre tooth tigers, llamas, buffalos, camels, mammoths and other species no longer existing. The mural is interactive because there are some camouflaged animals which the children can look for and thus participate in their learning process. Also some flourescent paint was used, so by use of a black light a very special three dimensional effect is achieved. The mural is both decorative and educational.
Another impressive mural created by Ruben Garcia is "Macro and Microcosmos" in the Planetarium Severo Diaz Galindo in Guadalajara, Jal. This mural measures 4 by 14 meters and symbolizes the perfect duality of the universe represented by the masculine and femenine figures. This mural, painted on marble, also includes faces of Einstein, Severo Diaz, Socrates and Darwin, as well as mathematical formulas and reflects the world of science and technology.
Ruben Garcia Mendoza graduated from the School of Plastic Arts of the University of Guadalajara and has pursued his artistic career for 14 years, after having worked in commercial art for the Vendor Company. He has had expositions in various galleries and each year has an individual show at Galeria Vallarta during the Art Walk. Although he paints various themes, his favorites are those expressing emotions. Studies of older people give him an opportunity to show the experience of time and character reflected in their wrinkled faces. However he is equally proficient in painting beautiful young faces, impressionist studies and abstracts.
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES EDUCATION (From http://BanderasNews.com)
Seven intercultural universities in Mexico are going a long way towards preserving the historical and cultural roots of the country's indigenous community, which comprises more than 10 percent of the country's 106 million people. The universities are dedicated to promoting alternatives for the development and integration of Mexico's 62 native ethnic groups. One is the new intercultural university in the impoverished southern state of Chiapas, where the Zapatista
guerrillas staged an uprising in January 1994. The university has a student body of 937, 60 percent of whom are women, and operates in the San Cristóbal de las Casas city hall.
Last year, Mexico's ministry of education began to foment "intercultural higher education", a concept aimed at facilitating access by indigenous people to tertiary education based on the characteristics of ethnic groups in different regions of the country. The areas of study include language and culture, alternative tourism, sustainable development, intercultural communication, law and agroecology. Mexico is the first Latin American country to open universities along these lines. Another intercultural university opened its doors last year in the central state of México, which is home to the Otomí, Mazahua, Tlahuica, Nahua and Matlazinca ethnic groups. A total of 270 students - 70 percent of whom are women - registered for the first courses offered by the indigenous university.
Sociologist Sylvia Schmelkes, general coordinator of intercultural bilingual education in the ministry of education and one of the driving forces behind the creation of the new universities, told IPS that the aim is for these educational institutions to be heavily based on the distinct cultures of the communities they serve, and to be centres for the preservation of native languages. She announced that intercultural universities are to open next year in the states of Chihuahua, Guerrero, Puebla and Quintana Roo, in addition to the seven already operating in the states of Chiapas, México, San Luis Potosí, Tabasco, Veracruz, Sonora and Michoacán, which are economically depressed regions with high proportions of indigenous people. One of the central aims of the new universities is to foment respect for indigenous people and their cultures and fight the discrimination and racism that they have faced for centuries, said Schmelkes.
”Indigenous people in our country need real opportunities for development, and one channel for that is through these universities,” she added. ”The authorities want indigenous people to acquire new scientific knowledge and apply it in their communities.” ”This could help lift up indigenous communities, which generally live in extreme poverty and social inequality,” said Angélica de la Peña, a lawmaker from the leftist Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) and the chair of the special commission on children, adolescents and families in the lower house of Congress.
On Aug. 22, the first courses begin in the intercultural university of Chiapas, which according to the local government will develop teaching and research programmes focused on integration, with the aim of producing university graduates committed to the economic, cultural and scientific development of indigenous peoples. According to the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics (INEGI), nearly 13 million people in Mexico belong to indigenous communities, which make up the poorest sector of the population, and have the lowest level of formal education.
A large number of indigenous people from small villages or rural areas fleeing utter poverty migrate to Mexico's large cities, where they swell the ranks of slum-dwellers and urban poor. Many indigenous families survive by panhandling or selling the crafts they produce. The states with the largest proportions of indigenous people are Yucatán (59 percent), Oaxaca (48 percent), Quintana Roo (39 percent), Chiapas (28 percent), Campeche (27 percent), Hidalgo (24 percent), Puebla (19 percent), Guerrero (17 percent) and San Luis Potosí and Veracruz (15 percent).
A study by the Autonomous Metropolitan University found that primary schools in predominantly indigenous areas present many shortcomings, because there are not enough funds to pay salaries for bilingual teachers. In addition, textbooks often misrepresent indigenous cultures because indigenous people themselves are not consulted when they are drawn up. The same study states that civil society organisations play an important role in bringing about changes in the educational system.
It cites the observations made by a group of bilingual teachers representing 50 communities, who are calling for efforts to teach children how to read and write in their native tongues in order to keep Spanish from continuing to obliterate indigenous languages.
According to the ministry of education, 40 native languages have disappeared from Mexico in the past few decades, and at least another 20 are at risk of vanishing.
The ministry says the creation of the intercultural universities will draw not only indigenous people but people from other sectors of the population as well into the effort to revive the 60 languages that still exist.
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