Costa Rican Art Work - Our Story
Costa Rica is home to many naturally-gifted artisans who are self-taught or schooled in traditional methods which have been passed down from generation to generation within their families. Often they are farmers or ranchers or tradespeople who are engaged at full-time jobs to support themselves. Tourism has afforded them the opportunity to share their cottage-crafts with the outside world. Some of these talented people paint, some sculpt, others carve, and all express their individual artistry with a raw force that we think comes directly from the secret heart of Central America.
One of our passions is indigenous art. We have a separate web site that provides information about and supports the sale of artwork for the Malekus. Their reservation is located near Guatuso, and we assist in scheduling tours of the reservations. Feel free to contact us if you have an interest.
Since we moved to Costa Rica in March of 2000 and joined the ranks of the pensionados (retired gringos), watching these artists at work has become a favorite pastime of ours. Often they are sitting patiently on the sidewalks in Plaza de Cultura in the center of San José, working in the warm sun to create marvelous treasures using the simplest of tools.
Because the designs and colors have to be seen to be fully appreciated and because these artists are not equipped to market their own artifacts, we are offering to do that for them and to provide the opportunity for you to own these original and unique creations as easily as possible. There are galleries in San José displaying a wide range of artistic work of every type, size, and quality, usually overpriced, but still inexpensive by US comparisons. The conditions which have influenced our decision to work with these artists is their and our lack of overhead and a mutual desire to provide an expanded market for all of us.
A thorny problem with which we struggle is that no matter how good our scanner might be, the up-loaded images do not begin to represent the details and color so visible when you hold the object in your hands. Also, because the artists are more inclined to focus on the work and not the packaging, their matting and framing, even if present, are nothing like you would most likely choose to have done to properly display your treasures.
If you find an item of interest, drop us a line...
...or give us a call at...
Phone and fax: 011-506-479-8071
Back to
Los Gringos Locos Home Page
This page was last updated on June 16, 2007
by Blue Moon Web Productions © 1999
All rights reserved.
