The Feria de Artesanías de Ponce (English: Ponce Crafts Fair), formally, Feria de Artesanías y Muestra de Arte de Ponce (Ponce Crafts Fair and Arts Expo), is an event that takes place every year in Ponce,

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

, where artists, craftsmen and artisans showcase their products. The products showcased are traditionally hand-made and in small quantities. The fair centers around crafts that highlight the traditional cultural background of Puerto Rico, including Taino, African, and Spanish traditions. The event started in 1974 and is reported to draw "thousands of visitors". It lasts three days and is held over a weekend during the month of April.

History

Handcrafts and

visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile art ...

have a long cultural history in the city of Ponce. Some of its better known plastic artists are Miguel Pou, Librado Net, and Wichie Torres. Many

Ponce Historic Zone The Ponce Historic Zone (''La Zona Histórica de Ponce'') is a historic district in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico, consisting of buildings and structures with architecture that date to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The zone go ...

homes were detailed by local craftsmen that worked alongside prominent Ponce architects in

woodworking Woodworking is the skill of making items from wood, and includes cabinet making (cabinetry and furniture), wood carving, joinery, carpentry, and woodturning. History Along with stone, clay and animal parts, wood was one of the first mate ...

, ironworking, and

metalworking Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on every scal ...

. The ''Feria'' promotes

Taíno The Taíno were a historic indigenous people of the Caribbean whose culture has been continued today by Taíno descendant communities and Taíno revivalist communities. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the pri ...

, Jíbaro and African cultures. The Taino culture was strong in the Ponce region with Taino cacique Agueybana originating from this region, and the Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Park being located in Ponce's Barrio Portugués. Taíno artifacts have also been found in Ponce's Caracoles sector. Ponce was also the Island's stronghold of

African culture African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

as African slaves were brought to the Ponce area in large quantities to work the sugar fields during the 19th century sugar cane rush; the only monument to the abolition of slavery in Puerto Rico and the entire Caribbean is located in Ponce. Feria de Artesanías de Ponce started in March 1974.''Con cuatro décadas la Feria de Artesanías de Ponce.'' Sandra Torres Guzman. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Year 32. Issue 1582. 26 March 2014. Page 24.

Venue

The celebration lasts three days and takes place during the month of March, sometimes in April, at

Plaza Degetau Plaza Degetau, formally Plaza Federico Degetau, is the larger of two plazas at Plaza Las Delicias, the main city square in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The other plaza is named Plaza Muñoz Rivera and is located north of Plaza Degetau. The ...

, in

Plaza Las Delicias Plaza Las Delicias is the main plaza in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The square is notable for its fountains and for the various monuments it contains. The historic Parque de Bombas and Ponce Cathedral buildings are located within the plaza ...

. It was started in 1974 and has been held continuously since. The 2020 edition was not celebrated due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. This fair should not be confused with "Feria Anual de Artesanías" which takes place at

Plaza del Caribe Plaza del Caribe is an enclosed shopping mall located in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is owned by Empresas Fonalledas, and is the largest mall in southern Puerto Rico. The mall is located at the intersection of Puerto Rico Highway 2 and Highway 12. ...

during the month of October and which started in 2001.

Sponsorship

The fair is sponsored by the Centro Cultural de Ponce Carmen Solá de Pereira and the Ponce Municipal Government. The fair is put together with grants from the

Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña The Institute of Puerto Rican Culture ( es, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña), or ICP, for short, is an institution of the Government of Puerto Rico responsible for the establishment of the cultural policies required in order to study, preser ...

, Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company, and the Ponce Municipal Government plus donations from businesses and local industry including Destileria Serralles.

Composition

The art expo was an additional feature of the fair and it was added in 1985. Over 150 artisans participate in the entire Fair event.''Festín cultural en la plaza de Ponce.''
Sandra Torres Guzmán. La Perla del Sur. 25 March 2015. Accessed 13 April 2016. Weblink updated 26 February 2018. Crafts expositions include those based on

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin ...

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

and

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...

and

glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling ( quenching ...

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hog ...

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

and palms, soap and

wax Waxes are a diverse class of organic compounds that are lipophilic, malleable solids near ambient temperatures. They include higher alkanes and lipids, typically with melting points above about 40 °C (104 °F), melting to giv ...

, metal and wire,

cloth Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

, and

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distrib ...

. Items such as

baskets A basket is a container that is traditionally constructed from stiff fibers and can be made from a range of materials, including wood splints, runners, and cane. While most baskets are made from plant materials, other materials such as horsehai ...

musical instruments A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...

doll A doll is a model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and wood are foun ...

s, religious figures, paper masks and

vejigante A ''vejigante'' is a folkloric character in Puerto Rican festival celebrations, mainly seen during Carnival time. Traditional colors of the Vejigantes were green, yellow, and red or red and black. Today, Vejigantes wear brightly colored, ornat ...

s are displayed. The crafts shown are offered for sale.''Feria de Artesanías de Ponce.''
Travel and Sports. Retrieved 26 March 2014.

Typical program

Following is the program for the 2018 Ponce Crafts Fair. The program is typical of other years activities.

References

External links

''Tercera feria regional de artesanías de Ponce.'' Sam L. Slick Collection of Posters, 1970–2000; University of New Mexico Library.''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feria de Artesanias de Ponce March events Folk festivals in Puerto Rico Annual events in Puerto Rico 1974 in Puerto Rico Festivals in Ponce, Puerto Rico Fairs in Puerto Rico 1974 establishments in Puerto Rico Crafts Arts festivals in Puerto Rico Art festivals in Puerto Rico