Pre-Hispanic symbols meet contemporary clay practices in the extraordinary works of Manuel David Reyes Ramirez and Maricela Gomez Lopez. The art duo have been sculpting together for nearly twenty years in the state of Oaxaca, which has its own celebrated ceramic history dating back at least 2000 years. Everything they need to create is within arm’s reach. The artists dig the clay for their pots and sculptures within a 50-mile radius of their community called Yanhuitlan. They prepare colors from natural local pigments, including pericón, indigo, pecan shells, and cochineal. All the work is manual, explains Gomez-Lopez, who adds “and our most important tool is our hands.”For texture, they turn to the spine of a maguey plant and sometimes a worn-out plastic credit card to scratch in and smooth out surfaces. For burnishing, they select a piece of quartz from the hillsides, and then they fire it all in a community gas kiln.The process is modest, and the outcome is quite cultivated. Each of our vessels, alluring and pensive faces, are strong individually and easily talk to each other. As do so many other folk art masters in other corners of the globe, these artists decided to pass their knowledge on to indigenous youth in their community, offering classes and organizing events for students to display and sell their work. “Clay has become our love and livelihood,” they say. The work is anticipated and avidly collected, in Mexico City and across the world. The sculptors’ work is locally revered and proudly displayed by their community. It is also featured at the Mano Mágica in Oaxaca and in Mexico City’s Museum of Arte Popular, with collectors on all continents.