This class of ceramics – necessitating a two-step firing process — was innovated by Dolores Porras and her (late) husband, Alfredo Regino Porras. It is now carried on by their many children and grandchildren, as well as a great number of fellow residents of their pueblo, Santa María Atzompa. Some pieces are of museum quality, while others — that can be seen spilling out of many of Atzompa’s doorways — are much more ordinary, far less ornate and/or not as well-executed. Pieces include purely decorative figures, as well as objects that can be put to use, e.g., planters, large urns, and plates. Decorative motifs include stripes, geometric forms, and figures such as mermaids, faces, flowers, fish and other animals.
