Mata Ortiz

Mata Ortiz is a small farming village south of Casas Grandes that became world famous for its pottery. It began with Juan Quezada, a local man who as a boy found painted shards around the ruins of Paquimé and spent years teaching himself to rebuild the technique: hand-coiled pots, local clays, mineral pigments and very fine brushes. Since the 1970s his work has reached museums and collectors abroad.

What started with one family turned into a whole town of artists. Today some 300 families make pottery, and every piece is unique, from pots that follow ancient Paquimé designs to bold modern patterns in black, red and cream. Many potters work at home and welcome visitors who want to watch, ask questions and buy directly.

The village grew up around a railway station in the early 1900s, then called Pearson, and later took the name of Juan Mata Ortiz, a 19th-century local hero. It is quiet and dusty, with adobe houses and a wide valley around it; the pottery is the reason to come.