Otomí Belt: A combination of EDOMEX, Rubicó and the WBC

The Otomí WBC belt is a priceless work of art that could not have been possible without the joint work of the Government of the State of Mexico, the Rubicó Art Gallery and the World Boxing Council.

The Rubicó Art Gallery is an artistic movement that has the mission of showing the world the brilliance of artists,  through creative freedom focused on developing proudly Mexican works of art and products.

One of the indigenous ethnic groups which still inhabit the State of Mexico is the Otomi, whose population is mainly settled around  21 municipalities,  including Xonacatlán, the place where the brilliantly gifted artisan Reyna Rayón Salinas, the main promoter of their culture, lives. Now her work reaches sports, via  the world through Boxing.

This maestrapiece belt consists of a work developed on a waist loom, in which the fabric itself is created. It is not an embroidery or a detail in the garment, but the fabric is created by weaving its threads.

The backstrap loom is tied at one end to a tree and at the other is held at the waist with a rope. It has several components: a series of wooden rods used to achieve the width of the fabric and to weave the threads. The heddle rods serve to lift the even threads and create space between both sets of threads to which the weft is inserted. In addition, with an attachment called tzotzopaztli the strands are tightened to create the design.

The very design of the belt is inspired by the peculiarities that make the Otomi culture unique.

The figure begins with a “Bird Arrow”, which makes reference to one of the main activities that were dedicated ancestrally, which is hunting; hence it shows two birds found in pink.

In this same vivid color and as part of the same strip, you can see a fret that, in the Otomí language is gutabi, translated into Spanish as a tool to plow the land. This figure is followed by that of a woman; both in the Otomí cosmogony represent fertility, both on earth and in life.

On the sides in green color the earth is presented, bordered by dots that represent the seeds that must be cultivated and cared for, just like the Otomí culture impregnated in this belt; since Reyna shared the spirit of struggle and achievement, of sowing to obtain fruits and of giving back to the earth what she offers.

The pink, green and yellow colors of this belt, commune with the chromatic and the values of the Government of the State of Mexico that consider the harmony based on the love and affection of the family, the diversity, the fertility of the valleys; inspiration to protect the rights and freedoms of women; the future and drive of our youth; the field, productivity; the joy and motivation to serve others, equality, tolerance and equal opportunities; care and health; as well as the firmness in our decisions to obtain strong results.

It should be noted that the wool with which the belt is made is handcrafted and dyed with natural dyes, from the Otomí land itself.