TEODORA BLANCO eodora Blanco was born in the farming and potting village of Santa Marφa Atzompa, Oaxaca. As a young girl, she was sent to grammar school but disliked it and quit. She preferred to work at home with clay. On early trips to Oaxaca City, Blanco visited the archaeological museum and was inspired by the art of her Zapotec ancestors to create original works of her own. The figural ceramics of Teodora Blanco reflect aspects of family and village life. Many of her figures represent women at market, mothers carrying babies, and women with protective animal spirits called nahuales. Her figures are often covered with mantles of flowers and animals to express themes of protection, fertility, and nurturance. Teodora Blanco used to say that she was not alive unless she was working with clay. Her spirit and unique style live on in the work of her children and their spouses who continue to produce hand-modeled and mold-made figures for sale in Mexico and abroad.						Teodora Blanco José Francisco Borges Felipe Archuleta Candelario Medrano Photo: Annie O'Neill.