A visit to La Iguana Art Gallery on Tucson’s North Fourth Avenue will easily transport you to another place.
There, at 545 N. Fourth Ave., you can find textiles and colorful folk art from Oaxaca; suns and mirrors from Tonalá, Jalisco; catrinas, crosses and glassware; clay pots from Mata Ortíz, Chihuahua; and talavera pottery from Guanajuato.
Since opening their doors 15 years ago, on May 25, 2007, husband and wife Imelda and Mario Jiménez have seen it all.
“That day we sold no more than two pairs of earrings,” recalls Imelda Jiménez.
Since then, they have managed to overcome a lot, including the economic difficulties brought on by COVID-19. Rather than having to close for good, as many shops did, the couple has come out of the pandemic with plans to open a larger store.
Meanwhile, they go back and forth from the United States to Mexico together, visiting artisans and artists in different states south of the border, to sell their wares at La Iguana and at art fairs across Arizona.
At La Iguana Art Gallery, you can find textiles and colorful folk art from Oaxaca; suns and mirrors from Tonalá, Jalisco; catrinas, crosses and glassware; clay pots from Mata Ortíz, Chihuahua; and talavera pottery from Guanajuato.
The ‘curiouseros’ of Nogales
Mario Jiménez says he inherited the job of “curiousero” (the curious one) from his family.
“I learned all this from my relatives, from my uncles; this is in my blood,” he says.
Mario Jiménez says his father and uncles were born salespeople. They owned very popular shops and liquor stores in Nogales, Sonora, like the famous Mickey Mouse, where they sold Mexican handicrafts and wines, American perfumes, and clothing from brands like Levi’s jeans.
Imelda Jiménez explains that the stores were known for being curious and the owners as “curiouseros,” “because supposedly these are ‘curiosities’ for Americans.”
A decade later, Imelda and Mario met in Monterrey, Nuevo León, when they were studying accounting at university. They got married and opened their first store in Nogales, Sonora, focused on Mexican art.
Mario Jiménez helps his wife package items for an upcoming fair. The couple takes their products to various fairs around the state and country.
From Nogales to Tucson
What brought the couple to Tucson stems from encounters in their Nogales shop, Mario Jiménez said.
“There were older people who came (from Tucson) and visited me; they liked to talk with me,” he said. Among them was a lady who insisted that he come to Fourth Avenue, to find a space and set up a store.
Mario Jiménez heeded the suggestion and one day came to Tucson with his wife and a few dolls to sell to help pay for the trip. The buyer, who was also the owner of an art store, invited him to sell the dolls at a fair on Fourth Avenue —and he sold almost everything he brought. That prompted Jiménez to look for a space of his own.
“In 2007, more or less, problems arose in Nogales, such as smuggling and the rest,” says Mario Jiménez. So they closed the store there and came to Tucson full time.
Imelda and Mario Jiménez sell art work from all over Mexico in their North Fourth Avenue store.
The story behind the art
There is a story behind each of the pieces sold at La Iguana. Imelda and Mario are happy to take the floor and share how each one got there.
At first, they bought the art from wholesalers, but then they began to source the merchandise themselves for better prices.
While Imelda stayed in Nogales, keeping track of the store and taking care of her children, Mario made trips to the interior of Mexico.
“I went to places I had never been. I didn’t know anything about the people,” he says. Over time, he got to know firsthand the enormous and diverse Mexican culture. He visited artisans in small towns in Michoacán, Puebla, Chihuahua and Jalisco, and he selected the merchandise.
“We don’t drive there anymore,” says Mario Jiménez. Now they fly to their destinations, choose the products, and the same artists mail them to Nogales.
Each work put up for sale at La Iguana represents not only a geographic area in Mexico, but also an art and a particular style. Each piece takes the time, talent and love of each artist. Everything is handmade, woven or painted by one person.
Monkey alebrijes from Oaxaca, Mexico, are on display at La Iguana Art Gallery. The shop celebrated its 15th anniversary in May.
Among the many items that are sold in La Iguana, you can find many crosses. The store offers a wide variety of crosses from Jalisco, Puebla and Oaxaca. Catrinas imported from Capula, Michoacán, are also very popular.
From Oaxaca, they bring Mexican folk art, rugs, table runners, pillowcases and tablecloths, all hand-embroidered. From Guanajuato, they bring talavera (high-temperature ceramics). They get blown glass products from Tonalá, Jalisco.
Mario Jiménez says only 15% of his clients are Mexican.
“Most of them are American. I think they appreciate art more; they read more” about Mexican art.
La Iguana is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. For more information about the store, call 520-882-0222.
