Hispanic Heritage Month
September 15 – October 15

In this Paul Pletka painting, “Danza Mitote”, are the Huichol Indians of Jalisco. The Huichols are a small tribe of approximately 35,000 living in central western Mexico in the Sierra Madre Mountains who maintain their pre-Columbian traditions.

The Danza Mitote is a religious festival of the Huichols. In this depiction, the artist captures the rhythmic movement, color and motion of the dancing figures dressed in traditional clothing. The hats worn by the males are hand-woven sombreros decorated with white turkey feathers and paper pendants suspended from the brims.

The men wear pants of handspun white cotton, decorated with yarn embroidery. The women wear flowing skirts and blouses of bright trade cloth with traditional head cloths. Visual references to peyote are in all the hexagonal designs found in the clothing and accoutrements, such as the woven bags, of the dancers.

Browse more of Paul Pletka’s work here.