Guatemala Indigo Dyer Olga Reiche Visits Taos
My friend Olga Reiche grows and dyes indigo in Antigua, Guatemala. I have visited her there with groups I have organized to learn, travel, and discover Maya textiles. Olga is in New Mexico to participate in the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market (IFAM) that starts tomorrow. She has been invited as Guatemala’s representative for 16 years.
Olga came to stay with me in Taos for two nights. I proudly wore a top handwoven from Coban, Alta Verapaz, by women artisans she works with who used the indigo threads she dyed in her studio. For the past two years, we have enjoyed taking an indigo dye workshop with her.
Joining her were her workshop assistant Vivian, Vivian’s sister Emmy from Guatemala City, and friends from Manhattan, Karen and David. We spent a day visiting the Taos Pueblo, the Millicent Rogers Museum, and celebrated Dave’s birthday at Orlando’s that night. The next morning, we met on the historic plaza, strolled through the shops and galleries, heard the story of D.H. Lawrence in Taos, and saw his X-rated paintings behind a hidden door in the La Fonda Hotel.
From February 6-13, 2027, I’ll be hosting an embroidery workshop in Panajachel, Lake Atitlan, Guatemala, with Multicolores. Olga serves on the Board of Directors of this organization. We’ll have a chance to visit Olga’s gallery, Indigo, in historic Antigua, too.
