Embroidered Stories from the Yucatán: IISE Associate Director Maureen Porter Embarks on Continued Fieldwork and Outreach in México

(Picture 1. Maureen and the team with the embroiderers and henequén weavers in the city of Tixhualactun)

 

Dr. Maureen Porter, the Associate Director of IISE, recently completed another round of ethnographic fieldwork and outreach in the states of Yucatán and Quintana Roo, México. 

As a cultural anthropologist of education, her scholarship focuses on: culturally-responsive pedagogies in a global context, particularly with Indigenous peoples; gender and the body politic; critical and decolonizing museum praxis; intergenerational cultural transmission of folk arts; and teaching multimedia ethnographic and qualitative research and data analysis.

In this multi-year research project, she explores the role of informal arts education as a vehicle for Indigenous survivance and identity. This is truly a living tradition, one that is also gaining traction in some regional schools where educators embrace teaching Indigenous folk art traditions and fostering Mayan language instruction.

This trip builds on her productive prior research trip with Dr. Martha Mantilla (SCAE PhD ’02) Librarian for Pitt’s Eduardo Lozano Latin American Collection, former Center for Latin American Studies Assistant Director Dr. Karen Goldman. The 2020 fieldwork was facilitated by Tey Stiteler, the founder and director of the Museo de Ropa Étnica de México (Museum of Ethnic Clothes of Mexico, or MUREM), a gallery designed to showcase the living traditions of ethnic textile production, decoration, and authentic wear. On this academic trip she was able to visit additional Indigenous Mayan communities where women (and a few men) are devoted to the intergenerational art of creating the elaborate, bold-colored embroidery for which the Yucatán is famous.

 

(Picture 2. Maureen and Justicia engaged in conversation while doing a cross-stitch technique in X´Pichil)

 

Engaged Ethnographic Scholarship in Educational Communities of Practice

Maureen and a small team of other aficionados from North America spent extended time in embroidery studios and cooperatives in rural communities, including with the embroiderers and henequén weavers in Tixhualactun (picture 1). Welcomed into the families’ homes, terraced patios, shady jungle backyards, and kitchens, the fieldworkers were able to sit down with elders and master craftspeople. Together, they discussed how stitches, color schemes, motifs, and figures have changed through the years. The designs “connect youth to the Mayan, colonial, and popular cultures that all exist together in a flamboyant synergy” Maureen explained.

In most villages, they also ate typical meals prepared by the extended families. She reports that she took the opportunity to sit at the hearth with her hosts and to learn to make corn tortillas by hand for the shared meal; this a skill that will need quite a few more years of practice! 

As a scholar looking at the cultural transmission of traditional wisdom and arts, she notes that being able to interview artists of all ages about their widely varying styles of embroidery was a great pleasure.

Huipil artists’ innovative designs based on local flora and fauna, with an anime character mixed in to reflect a child’s special interest, show how dynamic this practice is. From teaching school children the ancient “Cat’s Paws” running stitch that harkens back to Mayan times to tailoring a prom dress for a specific client, embroiderers’ creativity and artistry are truly inspirational!”

Picture 2 above shows Maureen and Justicia engaged in conversation while doing a cross-stitch technique in X´Pichil. The iconic clothes that embroiderers produce can be seen in use every day in the region, in high fashion studios, in fine art museum collections, and remain integral to religious and national holiday celebrations.

Maureen was able to generate an extensive photographic and video dataset that is coupled with interviews with key tradition bearers. She will be modeling the analysis of this ethnographic data in upcoming class sessions in her graduate courses on research design and next year’s NVivo computer-assisted multimedia data analysis. She also looks forward to sharing her research and related opportunities for collaboration and internships at the American Folklore Society professional conference and future IISE Symposium.   

In addition to documenting heritage education taking place in homes, community centers, and even a few schools, Maureen had also spent extended time in key regional museums. This ranged from a long day at the world-class Gran Museo del Mundo Maya in Mérida to enjoying live music demonstrations at the regionally distinctive Museo Maya Santa Cruz Xbáalam Naj in Felipe Carrillo Puerto. Maureen said that she particularly enjoyed being able to linger in the exhibits and engage in thoughtful conversations about critical museology at both sites.

Maureen reported that she cannot wait for the next international adventure. Seeing long-standing colleagues in action is satisfying, and friends and colleagues eagerly await Pitt students’ and faculty members’ return.

 

Connecting the Local and the Global

Two aspects of this ongoing ethnographic research are particularly important for further substantiating IISE’s role of bringing global education opportunities to our local Pitt School of Education (SOE) students. It also reaffirms IISE’s role as facilitating graduate students’ ability to earn certificates in Latin American Studies/Social and Public Policy or in one of the five Global Studies Concentrations. MA and PhD students at Pitt who are interested in Comparative and International Education and all who are in the department of Foundations, Organizations, and Policy appreciate that they can gain formal recognition for their global scholarly engagement through these certificates.

As the Associate Director of IISE, she is proud of the dynamic networks of colleagues that we have cultivated throughout the world. Our Faculty Associates and graduate students have unparalleled opportunities to do research and applied work abroad that counts towards their degrees. Our collaborative research and professional work makes a pivotal difference in supporting the important work of real communities’ well-respected institutions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

Maureen will have regular office hours in the IISE Suite in the renovated Posvar School of Education. She can also be contacted directly at (412) 251-3515  or via mporter@pitt.edu

Maureen’s recent fieldwork also solidifies additional worthwhile internship opportunities for Pitt students. Further information about two new sets of internships that grew out of this international partnership can be found at the following links below.

 

 

Learn more 

Internship Opportunities with Mayan Mexican Communities

Internship Opportunities at Museum of Ethnic Clothes of Mexico

IISE Faculty Research