Right after establishing my idea for Unit 3, I did some more research on Trees of Life, and thanks to my classmate, I also found out that the British Museum had a few trees of life in their collection under the name candelabrums (candelabras in Spanish).
After visiting and looking at their online collection, I discovered that the British Museum has a few candelabras from the most renown Mexican potters in Izúcar de Matamoros, Puebla, and Metepec. The Castillo family and the Soteno family are most known for their candelabrums that have earned much recognition around the world, not just in Mexico. Both families have been creating their own versions for generations and have passed down the craft to the next generation.
The Castillo Family
The British museum’s collection has a few candelabrums under the Castillo family name, and there are a few that also come from individual Castillo’s. The photo to the left is one of the pieces that the museum has under “Castillo family” but the most recognized member of the family is Alfonso Castillo Orta, who has many awards for his individual work. There is also work from Eriberto Castillo
Tiburcio Soteno Fernandez and Oscar Soteno
Tiburcio was part of the second generation of Mexican potters in Izúcar de Matamoros, Puebla, who learned the craft of tree of life from his mom. Oscar Soteno is part of the same family as a third generation, learning from his uncles and his parents. Many of their candelabrums are in the collection and each have a distinct style as the Soteno family and as individuals. The image to the right is an example of Tiburcio’s work, his own individual style and how decorative his tree of life’s can be.
There are also pieces from Francisco Flores and other pieces that are made by unknown artists but their region is consistently from Puebla and from Metepec. When searching the term candelabrum in the online collection, only 45 results appear, 32 of which are made of ceramic (and are actual Mexican candelabrums).
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/search?object=candelabrum