The pottery family workshop of Carlos Zamudio is located on federal highway 40; from a dessert plate to a pot made for consumers.
Mazatlán, Sin.- Approximately three kilometers from the head of the municipality of Concordia there are numerous pottery workshops, which offer their products to people who travel by the Federal Highway 40 or better known as El Salto-Villa Union.
Carlos Francisco Zamudio Tolano, 42 years old, is one of the many men who wake up every morning before dawn to create the pieces of clay that he exhibits in his workshop, which was founded 15 years ago; He, like many others, learned by seeing his father and some relatives who passed on the knowledge of land management from generation to generation.
The workshop has been in existence for 15 years, it’s something I learned from my family. Watching them work, I became interested and one day I started to work with the clay until I got used to it. They took me to see it and until now I’m doing pots, pots, and everything of clay
Carlos Francisco Zamudio Tolano
He pointed out that for the product to be resistant and durable, in addition to water, a factor of utmost importance is the quality of the land, so that which is dedicated to cultivation, better known as farmland, is the ideal to obtain good results ; in cart they go down to the fields to obtain the raw material.
“We bring the land here from a job, from here back. It is a special land because there is a lot of mud, good and bad, but this is yellow clay. With the color and the consistency when you wet it, you realize if it’s good. “
PROCESS
Zamudio Tolano explained that once the land is in place, the production process begins, where the weather conditions and the size of the piece influence the waiting time, which can take up to 15 days. The first step is to put the mound of yellow clay outside the workshop, where they give the first ‘wet’ and put it to dry, to later make rolls that weigh approximately 50 kilos.
He explained that after creating the rolls, he takes them to the interior of the workshop where his favorite process begins, the ‘stepped on’ of the mud, whose sole purpose is to soften the product so that it can be dipped again with water and then start modeling the product.
We step on it, we give it the form, we last a day to give it the form. We make the pots, the pots, then they last a week to dry them alone, then we leave them for a day in the sun, to go from there to the oven and give them four hours cooking and that is the finish that we give
Carlos Francisco Zamudio Tolano
He pointed out that the most difficult time to develop pottery is the rainy season, because there is no sun and on the hottest days the wind does not usually run, important elements to conclude the stage of outdoor drying of the piece. This can delay work up to eight more days.
PRICES
Carlos Francisco reported that the most sought after products by people are the pots of great capacity, which reaches a cost of 170 to 250 pesos, depending on colors, size and details; the cheapest is a cup of 35 pesos each.
The workshop “Juan Isidro Paredes Brito”, located in the municipality of Concordia, has two workers, Carlos Francisco who is the artisan and an older man who is in charge of the oven and who preferred not to reveal his name.
DATA
170 to 250 pesos is the cost of the pots.
35 pesos is the price of a cup, the cheapest product.
2 workers have the workshop.
JOB
Carlos Zamudio learned the craft of pottery by seeing his father and some relatives, who passed on the knowledge about the management of the land.
Source: el sol de mazatlan
The Mazatlan Post
