Talavera Poblana: Mexican Ceramics is on display in the Popular Library on the ground floor of Harold Washington Library Center from September 15 to November 2 in celebration of Latinx Heritage Month.
Pottery in the Talavera Poblana tradition typically features bright colorful designs on a white background. A product of Mexican artisans, it’s widely exported and collected around the world. Talavera Poblana encompasses both ceramic tableware and the colorful tiles featured in Mexican architecture.
Talavera Poblana ceramics originated in the colonial city of Puebla de los Angeles in Mexico. The style is likely named for Talavera de la Reina, a Spanish city with a renowned ceramics tradition. Poblana is the adjective meaning "from Puebla." Talavera Poblana ceramics use a mixture of indigenous Mexican, Spanish, Islamic and Italian techniques and designs. The mid-1600s through 1700s are considered the golden age of Puebla’s ceramics industry, but the Talavera Poblana tradition continues to this day.
Learn more in these resources:
- Talavera Poblana: Four Centuries of a Mexican Ceramic Tradition by Margaret Connors McQuade
- "The Talavera Tradition" by Lauren Karle, Ceramics Monthly, June 2014
- "Talavera" by Caleb Bach, Americas, September/October 2005
