Congratulations to Beatriz Morales and Clase Azul for the inauguration of Casa de los Leones in the central Polanco district of Mexico City, as part of which Morales revealed "La Tierra", a large new agave fiber work in the main lobby area of the historical house. The work by Beatriz Morales is a site specific commission for Casa de los Leones, the brands new Mexico City flagship decanting  studio. 

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"The concept of “La Tierra” delves into Beatriz Morales’s artistic technique and style and is made of hand-dyed agave fiber, using primarily natural materials worked with pre-Hispanic techniques and recipes.

 

In Mexico, the Earth is viewed spiritually as a living, feminine, and sacred being that gives life, food, and sustenance, connecting past, present, and future, and being the center of existence and community, not an economic resource, but an organism interconnected with the human being, requiring care, respect, and reciprocity through rituals to maintain cosmic and personal balance.

Agave fiber, which in Mexico is also known as henequen, is derived from the cactus-like agave plant, has been a vital resource in Mexico for thousands of years, until it was replaced by synthetic materials during the industrial revolution.

 

Morales’ reinterprets this plant fiber—an ancient resource of huge importance to all pre-Columbian civilizations like the Aztec, Maya and Inca — as an artistic raw-material with which she creates paintings, installations and objects. “I am drawn to the archaic power of this fiber, and use it to create cascades of color that are like three-dimensional brushstrokes”, she says. Morales’ work is a symbiosis of "fiber art," with its facets of craftsmanship and local tradition, and a compositional gesture that also aligns with painterly practices like abstract expressionism. Her approach remains fundamentally that of a painter, and her fiber artworks are paintings that reach into space.

 

Reflecting the core of Beatriz Morales' artistic practice, "La Tierra" (The Earth) is a symbol of respect, a celebration, and a tribute to the Mexican land. The land gives identity to those who work it in all its forms, to those who inhabit it. It nourishes us and provides context for our lives, realities, dreams, and aspirations. The work is an invitation to cultivate awareness and gratitude for the Mexican cultural context."