Chiquitano Art Catalogues

Our 55-page Chiquitano demonstration art catalogue, featuring the work of several artisans of the Jesuit missions towns in Chiquitos, is now available. It can be downloaded as an Adobe .pdf file by clicking here. (You'll need Adobe Reader, which you can download for free by clicking on the icon at the bottom of the page.) A new, expanded version will be available oh, whenever I get around to it. Which means probably never. Why? Read on....

Please note that this is a demonstration catalogue only. Demand for these items far outstripped supply, and the items within are no longer for sale through this Web site. You really should go to the source! I do accept "wish lists" and occasionally fulfill special orders when the mood strikes me...but that's almost never, sorry. On the other hand, you will be infinitely better off in every way getting these pieces yourself.

Look at it this way: what you spend in the Chiquitania on art carries far more weight than you'd guess. It's not just that you're supporting a small enterprise in a low-income area. You also may be helping to feed a family, educate a child, or supply medicine to people who otherwise would not have these things. Please do not fall into the trap of buying from US-based distributors who turn a profit at the expense of the native artisans, all the while claiming how they are trying to help them. This is hypocrisy at its absolute worst.

If you cannot buy in person from the artisans themselves, send an email and I'll put you in touch with any of them directly. The overwhelming majority of the supposedly socially enlightened online importers trafficking in the art of the Chiquitania are neither natives nor responsible, and precious little of their (very healthy) profit ever makes it back to the Chiquitania. Not convinced? Ask for an annual report and decide for yourself who profits in this game.

Visit the Chiquitania yourself and pick these up first-hand before the middlemen get involved, and in the process, do a world of good for the people who make these beautiful objects. In the Chiquitania, these pieces are still ridiculously underpriced relative to their demand, and you'll be purchasing straight from the source, helping the very people who make these items!