Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - An exhibition with works of Gustavo Perez and ceramists from Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua, opened on September 28, 2011 at the National Superior School of Arts (ENSA) in Limoges-Aubusson, France.

For the first time in history, the ceramics from Mata Ortiz are to be unveiled to France, a milestone event in the history of Mexican ceramics, in a traveling exhibition until January 2, 2012. It is noteworthy that the exhibition is to open in Limoges, the historic capital of ceramics in France, and most importantly, at the National Superior School of Arts, which highly specializes in ceramics.

This exhibition is made possible by the perseverance of Azul, Cultural Engineering, an agency specializing in inter-cultural relations with an emphasis on Mexican and Latin American culture, and the National Superior School of Arts of Limoges.

Special guests at the exhibition opening are Claudia Lovera, owner of Mata Ortiz Art Gallery in Puerto Vallarta (located in the Puerto Vallarta International Airport), who is also joint curator of the exhibition; and Mata Ortiz ceramist Pabla Quezada, who will demonstrate the traditional firing technique proper to the ceramists from the Chihuahua town. Pabla’s demonstration will begin the program and will be followed by a lecture by Mexican jurist and anthropologist Marta Turok, who is also joint curator of the exhibition.

After the conference, the opening ceremony of the exhibit will take place. Within the framework of the exhibition, a lecture by ceramist Gustavo Perez is scheduled for October 19. Upon returning to Mexico, Perez will continue to prepare the exhibition he will open at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City on December 19.

The collection presented in the exhibition is made up of 25 pieces by Gustavo Perez and 25 by other ceramists from the town of Mata Ortiz. The aim of the exhibition is to explore the dialogue, artistic and technical transference conditions between artists and artisans, through the encounter between the work of Gustavo Perez and that of 24 ceramists from Mata Ortiz. The exhibition continues at the ENSA’s Galerie de Études through October 27, when it will be closed in the presence of Mata Ortiz artists Lydia Quezada, Juan Quezada’s sister, and Diego Valles.

After closing in the ENSA venue, the show will move to the Museum of Biarritz, in the south of France, where it will be up for viewing from November 2 to December 2, and then it will move to L’Hotel du Palais in the same city of Biarritz for a final stage that will close January 2, 2012.