by Mildred Boyd

      At first glance, the colorful patterns interwoven into Mexican textiles seem to be designed merely to please the eye. This is far from the truth. Though many have become so stylized as to be unrecognizable, the traditional motifs a modern weaver incorporates into her work are as ancient as the backstrap loom on which she creates them and have mystical meanings whose origins can be traced back 3,000 years or more. The huipil was considered a sacred enclosure for a woman’s body and, as such, was adorned in much the same way as an altar or shrine. Originally, each design element was chosen either to guard against the evil or invoke the protection of the benign forces that ruled her world. Nature is well represented; flowers and trees, birds and insects, animals and mountains, stars and suns, clouds and lightning; the whole universe, in fact can be found on milady’s huipil. Gods and demons also play a part and post-conquest weavers incorporated Christian symbols in their designs. Though their message is traditional, every huipil is artistically unique and, especially in those worn on ceremonial occasions, the bottom row of symbols quite often carries the symbolic signature of its proud creator.

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