Butterfly Dance Handcrafted Copper and Gold Leaf Vase from Mexico

"I'm Rosa Ivette Paz and I grew up in a family with the wonderful tradition of copper work. It was all thanks to my grandfather who began this fascinating art of designing and crafting objects in copper. He taught my parents. They taught me and I taught my husband, Daniel Gomez, and this art has become the heart of my extended family. In every family get-together, copper is always a topic of conversation.

"This precious work that implements copper as a metal of common use originated with the arrival of Don Vasco de Quiroga. He gained the affection of the native Purépecha people, thanks to his works and the economic means that he promoted. These benefited the Purépecha. After the conquest, 'Tata' Vasco's kind and affectionate treatment of the Purépecha was noted throughout Colonial Mexico.

"He moved the Bishop's offices from Tzintzuntzan to Pátzcuaro and founded the hospital town of Santa Fe de la Laguna. He also established the Colegio de San Nicolás Obispo, the precursor of the Universidad Nicolaíta that still exists in Mexico's Michoacán state.

"What I love best about copper is its simplicity and how it lets you transform it into whatever you want. I love the color — it's indescribable.

"My main inspiration comes from nature and its many tonalities.

"In each of our copper designs, I want to share the awareness that you're holding a piece of history in your hands. In Colonial Mexico, it was one of the most widely used metals, and we even had copper coins. It is a great transmitter of heat in cookware and is also an excellent conductor of energy. But we have only a few copper mines in Mexico, so we often recycle the metal.

"I love to focus on the design of each piece that we craft, especially the jewelry. Each detail makes the design look very special.

"We want to share our fascination with copper and the meaning it has for us. We want our designs to be known and, in this way, encourage a way for families to share their likes, their passions, their experiences and to learn from the good and bad moments. We want to show a means of inspiration.

"My desire is to transmit my enormous fascination and delight in copper art and the ancestral traditions we are fortunate to have."