CRAFTING SELVES - THE LIVES OF 2 MAYAN WOMEN

An examination of the lives of two Highland Maya craftswomen of Chiapas, Mexico, illustrates how they have responded to opportunities created by tourism-new markets as well as possibilities for encountering outsiders. In their relationships with tourists, both women have followed similar paths in transforming the traditional patron-client role to conform with a modern form of expressive friendship. On the other hand, the differing constraints of their crafts-ceramics and weaving-in conjunction with the nature of their ties to their communities have led them to construct images of themselves that diverge substantially with regard to cultural identification.