San Antonio arts district interweaves culture and history

San Antonio's La Villita Historic District Arts Village was the city's first neighborhood, dating to 1819. The adobe and stone buildings were the barracks for Spanish soldiers stationed at the Alamo. Today it is home to 20 artist studios, stores, and galleries.

Village Weavers, one of the oldest shops, features the work of artists from all over the United States, and Latin America.

The walls are lined with stunning hand-woven Peruvian and Bolivian hangings depicting scenes of village life: market days, fiestas, farms, mountains, and towns.

Collectors of Peruvian ceramics will find shelves full of Chulucana pottery, an ancient form of clay sculpture done in the mountainous jungles of northern Peru; each piece bears the signature of one of 250 registered artisans.

The Spanish huipils (blouses) here are the handiwork of women in impoverished villages in Guatemala and Mexico. Each one is embroidered by hand in intricate floral and geometric patterns.

The shop features demonstrations of local artists' work. On the day we visited Stacy Kamas, a San Antonio jewelry designer, weaved strands of multicolored silk threads around metal loops, leaving each pair of tear-shaped earrings with a distinct intricate spiral design at its center.

This place will likely tempt you to spend lots of time - and money.

Village Weavers, 418 Villita St., Number 8, San Antonio, 210-222-0776, villageweavers.com.

FRANCES J. FOLSOM