Martin Xuana’s curandera feels as though she has stepped out of a village story. Dressed in a long blue robe scattered with tiny stars and crescent moons, she carries a walking staff in one hand and a leafy medicinal branch in the other. Her extraordinary animal mask, with its wide mouth, carved teeth, black mane, and natural fiber whiskers, gives the figure a wonderfully theatrical presence.
Curanderas are traditional healers whose knowledge may include medicinal plants, prayer, ritual, massage, and other practices passed through families and communities. In Oaxaca, as elsewhere in Mexico, these healers have long held an important place in traditional medicine and community life. The leafy branch Martin has placed in her hand feels especially appropriate, recalling the close connection between curanderismo and the knowledge of healing plants.
What I especially like is how Martin treats the subject with affection and humor. The oversized mask, wiry whiskers, moon-and-star robe, and little painted flowers on the branch make her immediately memorable. She is mysterious, but not intimidating. There is something almost reassuring about her, as though she has arrived carrying exactly the remedy you need.
Hand-carved and hand-painted in Oaxaca, this authentic Mexican folk art figure brings together traditional imagery, imagination, and Martin Xuana’s unmistakably personal style.
