Folk Lure : Handmade crafts from Mexico and Central and South America are popular for their beauty and practicality. They make themselves right at home in Orange County.

Fanciful animals in teal, red and yellow take on myriad shapes and forms. Tin boxes sparkle. Blown glass catches the light. Carved wooden figures, earthen pottery and colorful weaves all speak of cultures close to the land.

The folk art of Mexico, Central and South America is increasingly finding a place of prominence in homes, offices and galleries in Orange County and throughout the United States. The growing interest reflects the increased connection between the cultures and a broad resurgence of appreciation for native arts and crafts.

This art defies easy categorization. The designs are often particular to a specific region; some pieces carry the imprint of outside influences, ancient and modern. Commerce has entered the fray too. With increasing demand, families and sometimes entire villages devote themselves to designing and producing specific styles of hand-crafted folk art.

“We’re seeing a tremendous increase in the popularity of Mexican, Central and South American art,” says Carol McDonough, an interior designer and owner of EtCetera, an Anaheim Hills-based gallery and shop that specializes in imported items.

“What’s great about Mexican and South American arts and crafts is that there is such diversity. Even if you don’t like a particular style from one area, there’s bound to be something else that catches your interest. And the work comes in all price ranges. We have customers who are living in million-dollar Spanish-style homes, and they adore the little $10 pieces of pottery. It’s that sense of vibrancy and history that they are after.”

Much of the folk art has a practical side as well as an artistic one--there are bowls, boxes, blankets and musical instruments as well as sculptural objects. Some pieces are religious, some political, some just playful. Media include wood, clay, paper, cloth, tin and iron.

Many pieces are tied to holiday celebrations, such as El Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) and Navidad (Christmas).

Here’s a look at some of the Latin folk art styles available in Orange County:

Day of the Dead

In Mexico, death is seen as part of life, and the dead are never forgotten. It is believed they return each year to be with the living.

El Dia de los Muertos artwork typically features skeletons, tiny coffins and tableaux of skeletons in everyday settings: wedding couples, soccer players, bar patrons, movie watchers.

It is believed that the spirits of those who have died return on Nov. 1 each year and depart on Nov. 2.

Offerings of food and drink are given, and candles and incense burners are lit. Flowers are also used. Strong scents are encouraged because it is believed that the dead take the aroma with them.

According to gallery owners who carry Day of the Dead art, there is a growing appreciation and understanding in this country of this work.

Arpilleras

Although much artwork from Mexico and Central and South America is spiritual, some is political in nature, such as the arpilleras of Chile.

According to Sue Fenwick, one of the managers of Third World Handarts in Orange, a nonprofit organization that sells the art of cooperatives throughout the world, the arpilleras tell the story of village life in Chile as well as political turmoil.

“About the 1973 coup of General Pinochet, people who wereconsidered threats were taken and ‘detained.’ There would be no record of their disappearance and no help provided to their families in locating them.”

The village women began stitching scenes of abductions, beatings and police brutality in their arpilleras, the Spanish word for the burlap that serves as the backing for these works.

The pieces often feature soft, doll-like people appliqued onto a background of village life and scenes include farming, sporting events and schoolyards.

Oaxacan Figures

Rapidly gaining in popularity, these imaginative creatures are identified with the Mexican state of Oaxaca, where they are made. The carved wood figures are brightly painted, often playful animal images. Sometimes the figures combine parts from different animals, such as a zebra body with a lion’s head and dragon’s tail.

“Oaxacan animals started being heavily marketed about 10 years ago,” says Jane McCauley, an interior designer and art collector. “Now they are a big collectible.

“The villagers call the figures ‘magic in the trees.’ They are carved from tree branches, and they take on different forms. The men usually carve the pieces, while the women paint them. They started out simply, but now they’re more fanciful.”

Not all the figures are small, however, says Mal Miele, owner of Galleria del Sol in Fullerton, which specializes in ethnic art.

“Some were used in parades where someone would step into the body. For instance, we have a mermaid body that someone would step in and then pull up around his or her waist so the legs stick out and you can walk. When you walk, the fins flap. I think the artists must have a lot of fun designing these. It makes it so parade participants look like a walking float!”

Pottery

Pottery is a frequent fixture of Mexican art. Pulque pots (pulque is a liquor fermented from cactus) are used to hold flowers or water or as a decorative element on their own.

“For a humble pot, it’s very well known,” McDonough said. “Everywhere you travel in Mexico, you’ll find pottery--pots in kitchens, on porches, many with practical purposes as well.”

McCauley said Mexico’s Puebla area is renowned for its pottery, although “others also create very fine pieces.”

A chiminea , or Mexican oven, although it was designed strictly for utilitarian purposes, is also becoming popular in decorating schemes. It is usually made of bricks and has a grill on top. Southern Californians are charmed by its rustic appeal, according to McDonough.

Clay statuary and folk art decorations are produced throughout Mexico, even in the poorest villages. Even in the homes of the poor, there is bound to be some form of statuary.

A frequent clay figure is the arbol de vida, or “tree of life.” Often depicted with Adam and Eve figures alongside it, the tree is usually brightly painted and sometimes features a snake as well as birds and flowers.

“You can often determine where a piece of pottery was created by the color of the clay,” McCauley said. “Clay changes from region to region. The Puebla region has the reddish clay while pieces from Oaxaca are molded from black clay.”

Molas

Molas are panels of cloth with extremely fine, precise stitches that are appliqued by the women of Panama.

“By selling these fine pieces of stitchery, the women are able to improve their families’ standard of living,” Fenwick said. “In fact, many of them go right up to the cruise ships that come through Panama, selling their wares.”

One needs to look closely at a mola to truly appreciate its beauty. What may appear as a solid line is, in fact, an impossibly tiny chain of precisely crocheted stitches.

“It’s really a very beautiful and painstaking art form,” Fenwick said. “Finally, it’s beginning to be appreciated.”

Ironwork

Influenced by the Spanish, black wrought iron is used to create everything from furniture to candelabra.

“Until recently, Mexican wrought iron always seemed to have lots of curlicues,” McCauley said. “Now the artists are using nature as more of a guide. We are seeing pieces where branch formations and more flowing designs are being used.

“The Mexicans are known for their durable and beautiful iron work, and sometimes you will find a French influence such as a bench with a shell design. We also see Aztec influences every once in awhile, such as a sun god motif.”

Papier-mache

Papier-mache is used to create brightly colored bowls and platters of varying designs and patterns as well as toys and figurines.

It is often employed in creating animals, masks, skeletons and devils used in Day of the Dead ceremonies.

“If you look at some of the figures, you’ll see that they are using animal whiskers for hair or using dried beans or whatever else is around,” McCauley said. “The artists are very resourceful, and they use what’s at hand.”

Tin

Because it is lightweight and flexible, tin is often used to create mirrors, boxes and a variety of ornaments. The tin is cut in long, thin sheets and then painted with translucent colors. Typical subjects include sunbursts, tropical birds, angels, trees, animals and musical instruments. Retablos are pieces of tin that have been painted on and usually feature saints or other religious icons.

Gourds

Gourds are frequently used to fashion boxes, bowls, rattles and other functional items. Many have designs carved around the exterior to enhance their beauty.

Musical Toys

Clay whistles, clay flutes (usually from the Peruvian Andes), brightly painted maracas, clay bells and wind chimes have all become popular collectibles. Created by hand and painted, these pieces are often admired as much for their appearance as they are for the music they create.

Glass

The Guadalajara, Mexico, area is particularly known for its exquisite hand-blown glass. Vases, pitchers and glasses are hand-blown, and the rims are frequently ringed with a deep cobalt blue or green.

Nascimientos

Nativity scenes frequently are designed to resemble the people who built them. That’s why a nativity set from Peru on sale at Third World Handarts in Orange features the Virgin Mary with a long single braid, a style typical of the young mothers of that region.

Most nascimientos are hand- carved and -painted using local woods or materials. Frequently, they are fashioned out of clay or papier-mache .

Santos

Often created in Guatemala, santos are carved depictions of the saints. The tradition of carving the figures is often handed down through the generations, so you frequently find families with a reputation as santeros, or saint carvers. These works, starting at $40, are carved in wood and hand-painted.

Crosses

Crosses are another important artwork and come in various styles and price ranges. Sometimes they are affixed with milagros, or miracles.

“Sometimes if there is something wrong, such as a bad foot or broken bone, the person will pray to a particular saint to heal them,” Miele said. “When they are healed, they will affix a tiny metal foot, hand or whatever to the cross as a token of thanks.”

Masks

Frequently used for fiestas and ceremonial celebrations, masks are used in dances to tell stories or in theatrical productions. Many of the masks from Mexico and its southern neighbors are made of wood, papier-mache , cloth and gourds. They often feature symbolic creatures from the animal world.

“When I go looking for masks, I sniff them to see if they smell smoky,” Miele said. “If they do, then chances are they’ve actually been used at a ceremony, and that makes it more valuable to me.”

Miele says he is delighted by the masks, which can become very elaborate, such as one that depicts butterflies and another enhanced with copper.

Where to Find Latin Folk Art

Here are some of the area stores that sell folk art from Mexico and Central and South America:

Third World Handarts

1010 N. Batavia St., Suite F , Orange

(714) 288-1434

Among items on display are nativity scenes from a dozen Central and South American countries: a soft sculpture scene from Peru, a brightly painted set from El Salvador, a village hut from Guatemala. Handarts also carries arpilleras, plates, weavings and toys.

EtCetera

160 S. Fairmont Blvd. , Anaheim Hills

(714) 282-7111

Carries works from many countries ranging from blown glass to wooden santos. Currently displaying a wide variety of nativity scenes. Other items include Oaxacan figures, pottery, ironwork and dolls.

Bowers Museum Gift Shop

2002 Main St. , Santa Ana

(714) 567-3643

Offers special Day of the Dead T-shirts created by Mexican artists as well as a wide selection of Oaxacan animals, tree of life pieces, black pottery and papier-mache items. Milagros and wall decorations are also available.

(The Bowers Museum will be hosting Day of the Dead activities this weekend, including a traditional cemetery observance today and a festival from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at the museum.)

UNICEF Store

The United Nations Center

2428 N. Grand Ave., Suite F , Santa Ana

(714) 542-9743

Offers a variety of ethnic arts including works from many Latin American countries. Items include musical instruments, pottery, wood carvings, tin sculptures and many different styles of woven wall hangings from Peru, Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico.

Timbuktu Folk and Tribal Art

1661 Superior Ave. , Costa Mesa

(714) 650-7473

Features a range of art including masks from Guatemala, Mexico and other countries, Day of the Dead skeleton figures and boxes, molas, milagros, devotional paintings and santos.

La Luz de Jesus Art Gallery and Gift Shop

7400 Melrose Ave. (upstairs) , Los Angeles

(213) 651-4875

A wide variety of Mexican tin including crosses, boxes, frames and fold art, such as heart-shaped sconces. Many types of clay figurines designed for Day of the Dead festivities, such as skeleton brides and grooms. Also features ironwork from Peru and many types and styles of milagros.