IMPRESSIONS OF CUENCA

Every time I visit Cuenca I am again struck by the beauty of the colonial architecture and

the cultural references to the indigenous roots

and by what is going on in and around Parque Calderone, such as new horses or

 fancy dogs or

good music nearby.

And there is always the draw of the new cathedral, not just because it dominates the main square but also because of its sheer beauty.

All of these are things I think of when I remember Cuenca, but most of all it is the relationships, however fleeting, formed with people that make coming to Cuenca so memorable.

Jim, Rich and Chuck

I especially value buying art from the artist.  I have had many lovely conversations with artists in Cuenca - such as the lovely man from Saraguro who introduced himself as Santiago in the process of my buying alpaca gloves in the Casa de Mujeres market next to my all-time favorite vendor from Saraguro, Maria.  (To read more about her see my earlier blog http://www.ajstephens.blogspot.com/2010/01/in-search-of-ponchos.html).  Downstairs at the same market is an artist who does paintings (mostly copies of famous latin painters' styles, like Botero) as well as some small frame-able greeting cards of birds (made of feathers) or cholas (native women) made of cut paper.  I neglected to get his name but here is his photo.

I told him he looked very serious and he agreed - normally he is a smiling person.

Over on Calle Larga Jim and I were walking to the outdoor cafe Coffee Tree to have some coffee and dessert and we saw a door opened into a studio-courtyard.  The artist does paintings, jewelry and sculpture.  We observed him pounding the fine feather details into a copper hummingbird wing which would later be attached to the body.  After some conversation we learned that our artist was Julio Machado and his work is currently being displayed at a gallery in Union Square, San Francisco.  For more information about that click here:  http://www.hardinggallerysf.com/#home.  Julio willingly posed next to his huge painting of hummingbirds.

Other meetings and conversations, however small - say with a taxi driver or the waiter at a restaurant - are the very real connections that make us want to return again and again to Cuenca, Ecuador, and the wonderful people here.

Audrey