SYNOPSIS:

Since the 1980s, San Antonio Arrazola has garnered international acclaim as the  birthplace of the colorful woodcarvings known as alebrijes. However, few tourists and  folk art collectors are aware that it is also the home to a group of artisans who make and  sell replicas of pre-Hispanic artifacts at nearby Monte Albán, the largest archaeological  zone in Oaxaca and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Yet, while Arrazola woodcarvers  are promoted as skilled craftsmen for the tourist art market, replica artisans and  vendors, often from the same households as the carvers, have historically been viewed  by archaeologists and some tourists as an unwanted presence at the site. By focusing  on the case of replica makers and vendors, this talk reconsiders what it means to make  a living in Oaxaca's tourism-driven economy that is built around ideas of cultural  heritage.

Bio:

Dr. Ronda Brulotte is Associate Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies at  the University of New Mexico. She received her PhD in Anthropology and MA in Latin  American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a two-time Fulbright  García-Robles Fellow to Oaxaca, Mexico, where her research focused on local craft  economies. She is the author of Between Art and Artifact: Archaeological Replicas and  Cultural Production in Oaxaca, Mexico and co-editor of Edible Identities: Food as  Cultural Heritage. She recently finished a book on mezcal in Oaxaca, to be published  early next year by the University of Texas Press.