Lagarteranas, 1925, José Ortiz Echagüe (Guadalajara, Spain, 1886 – Madrid, Spain, 1980
José Ortiz Echagüe stands out as one of the pioneers in the use of traditional pigment prints in photography. He carried out almost all these processes by himself, which afforded him certain creative liberties and attributed to the originality of his works. He used a printing method of “carbon fresson”, which produced a rough and velvety texture that upon developing, could then be transferred to paper. Echagüe opted not to catalogue his work as was the aesthetic trend at the time, instead favoring to position his works within the field of history, as documentation rather than art. Inspired by the authors of the generation of 98’, he looked to the past for the purpose of saving the image and the memory of what he had already foreseen would eventually disappear: the customs, dress, folklore, and landscapes— that is, the personality, or alma, of village life and the anthropological reality of Spain.
In the period following the Spanish crisis in the Pacific (1898), a conflict and impulse arose in the collective mind to rebuild the concept of a once powerful nation. José Ortiz Echagüe carried out a unique, conceptually articulated work that spans the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa, systematizing the peculiarities and idiosyncrasies of the nation, from its style of dress to its unforgiving landscapes. This research project had been published in various works, mainly as photographic albums: España, Tipos y Trajes, 1933, (Spain, Types and Costumes); España, Pueblos y Paisajes, 1939, (Spain, Peoples and Landscapes); España Mística, 1943, (Mystical Spain); España, Castillos y Alcázares, 1956, (Spain, Castles and Alcázares).
Echagüe himself said that although he had walked much along the roads of Spain, he did not know a more curious place than the village of Lagartera, where the traditional dress and customs had been particularly, and unabashedly, resistant to change. And this at a time when the rest of the country began to cultivate a collective self-consciousness. There began a tendency to reject traditional forms of dress in favor of foreign fashion trends, inspired by the desire to appear modernized, largely influenced by the major European spheres of influence at the time. Until the 1960s, where Lagarterans could still be seen partaking in routine village life wearing their traditional forms of dress. From this point on adoption of popular styles of clothing began to take hold. Interestingly, however, this trend was met with some defiance. It wasn’t until 2018 that the last woman who had spent her entire life donning the traditional textiles of the village passed away. Nowadays, the traditional dress is only worn on the designated festivals.
This legendary tradition of needle work in Lagartera has its origins that date back to the 15th century and is exemplary of artistic expression of one of the last Jewish strongholds of the Mozarabic settlers in the Peninsula. The small village of Lagartera in Toledo, Castilla la Mancha, is famous for its intricate and elaborate embroidery work, which has been valued as an example of Spanish cultural heritage and craftsmanship. This custom of producing embroidered textiles was not only a habitual practice among women, but also represented a way of life that contributed heavily to a thriving textile industry in the region between the 18th and 19th century.
Here, in this city, the environment seems different—as if a different way of life had evolved—one with a focus on elaborate adornments, which today might seem like an obsession to embellish and decorate even the most modest of surfaces. All these details and combinations of garments, colors, and fittings, transmitted information for the Lagarteran society, so that each type of textile had a specific use and meaning and blurred the lines between the useful and the beautiful.
There have been many artists that have taken interest in Lagartera for its picturesqueness, which is how many have become familiar with its peculiarities throughout the world. The British photographer Charles Clifford visited the village in 1858 to photograph it for a study on the socio-cultural environment of Spain. The painter Joaquin Sorolla also visited Lagartera on many occasions only to become enchanted with the landscape and colorful textiles. As a result, Sorolla produced some artistic works that have had an extraordinary recognition, such as the canvases he painted for the Hispanic Society in New York, to make a mural dedicated to the arts and culture of Spain featuring the traditional textiles from Lagartera. The canvases that comprise this work Visión de España, (Vision of Spain), Sorolla collects figures of Spanish characters from different areas of the country in scenes that exemplify the monuments, festivals, traditions, and textiles. The mural is divided in 14 paintings as a series of the varios locations: Castilla, La Fiesta del Pan, 1913; Sevilla, Los Nazarenos, 1914; Aragón, La Jota, 1914; Navarra, El Concejo del Roncal, 1914; Guipúzcoa, Los Bolos, 1914; Andalucía, El Encierro, 1914; Sevilla, El Baile, 1915; Sevilla, Los Toreros, 1915; Galicia, La Romería, 1915; Cataluña, El Pescado, 1915; Valencia, Las Grupas, 1916; Extremadura, El Mercado, 1917; Elche, El Palmeral, 1918-1919; Ayamonte, La Pesca del Atún, 1919.
Castilla, 1913 (Scene I of Visión de España). Joaquín Sorolla (1863-1925). New York Hispanic Society.
Madre, 1930. José Ortiz Echagüe (1886-1980) Tipos de Lagartera, 1912. Joaquín Sorolla (1863-1925)
Another painter, Marcial Moreno Pascual (1911-1983), a native of Lagartera who settled in New York, is considered a relevant Spanish painter of the post-Civil War period. Although his work has not been fully recognized, he portrayed and set out to revalue traditional customs, elevating the practices of the people of his village by meticulously describing their clothing style, the great protagonist of his work.
Nena en Traje de Fiesta, 1930. José Ortiz Echagüe (1886-1980) |
Compuesta y Sin Novio, 1934. Marcial Moreno Pascual (1912-1983) |
These three artists elevate folk art in their work, captivated by village life, their works are a representation of historical and social subjects which attempt to rescue their perspectives and positions from becoming lost.
Within the cultural mosaic of various popular and traditional art forms, the province of Toledo, within the region of Castilla La Mancha, is a focal point for traditional textiles, specifically the villages of Lagartera and Almagro. These traditional arts provide a shared experience for the community and embody their values and perspectives, which pass down from generation to generation. They form a common language that become a foundation for all our diverse communities. At the national level, traditional arts also play an important role in strengthening the personal and cultural identity of a country. On a personal level, they provide a focal point to which people can always return, whether it to be to explore their roots or to achieve a deeper connection with their communities. These connections with the past are woven together to form a social fabric that strengthens the heritage that members are grafted on to; and in some instances, it may provide a safety net helping individuals weather the challenges associated with the demands of modern life.
Traditional arts are a key component of the canon of original works. They are rooted in a long historical tradition and have the potential to adapt to the present, providing a deep well of resources for inspiration and innovation in the distinctive cultural development of any place.
The traditional arts scene in Spain is rich with a diversity of cultures whose artistic expression is produced through the development of traditional arts. They document the struggles of rural society, set against the backdrop of a rugged and unforgiving landscape, while also celebrating the human impulse to take what is common and daily, and make it beautiful—imbuing objects with dignity, and by proxy, so too, themselves.