7 minute read
Culture & Community
Lotería!
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Color, Culture and Cuisine
By Susan Yerkes San Antonio is famous for its lively multicultural vibe and fabulous Mexican food. Both of those traditions come alive in Lotería de Comida, a new version of the iconic “Mexican Bingo,” which combines the two in a mouth-watering reimagining of the beloved game.
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LOTERÍA DE COMIDA
www.LoteríadeComida.com
“LOTERÍA REMEDIOS”
www.Facebook.com/xelena.gonzalez.12
TRACEY MAURER
www.TMaurerPhoto.com
El Tomate
Tracey Maurer tells the story of one of her Lotería images: “As a food photographer, I’m always on the hunt for unique looking produce. At a farmer’s market in San Francisco, I found the most perfect, yet imperfect heirloom tomato. I lovingly wrapped it in a hand towel and carried it back to San Antonio. When we returned, I photographed it as soon as I could get to the studio. The tomato was a beautiful red color and to my delight, was heart-shaped. I love the finished image and I have used it as my personal “symbol” for the last 25+ years. The tomato image is the first card in the Lotería series and deck—it is familiar and personal to me, and it represents nature’s perfection.”
Even if you don’t know much about Lotería, you have probably seen some of its classic images. In the past couple of decades, the stylized symbols on the cards—the devil, the hand, the heart and dozens more—have been used on everything from billboard ads to T-shirts and tattoos. The game itself is often likened to Bingo, with a caller and multiple players who try to match the cards with images on their playing boards, or tablas. Gradually it soon became a national pastime, often at village fairs. A charismatic caller would draw a card and recite a descriptive rhyme for players to guess before the image was revealed. Today, it is a beloved ritual for families or larger gatherings, played throughout Mexico and in many parts of the U.S. and beyond.
The images on the cards have morphed over the centuries. In the Italian Renaissance, early versions bore images borrowed from the popular tarot decks. In the late 1800s, two popular versions emerged, which are still available today in some form today.
In 1887, Clemente Jacques, a French businessman with a printing press and a bottling and canning business known for tomato ketchup, made a deck that included a card featuring a ketchup bottle with his label clearly visible—a clever form of product placement. He massproduced the games, even including smaller versions that were put in military ration kits for Mexican soldiers, who took the games home to their families. His 54-figure Lotería, known as Lotería Don Clemente, is the most widely known version of the game today.
Another version still played in Mexico was created in 1891 by José Maria Evia Griñé, a cigar manufacturer who printed elegant lithographic stickers to give away with his cigars, which buyers could accumulate to create their own playing boards. There are 90 images on the board in this game, but no cards—the images are numbered and the cantor calls out numbers, as in Bingo. Known as Campechana Lotería, it is still popular in some parts of Mexico today.
Lotería’s images have changed over the years, and some interesting variations have emerged. In the 1930s, the Roman Catholic Church introduced a game featuring religious symbols to help educate the faithful, but it failed to flourish. Recently, Lotería is hot, and modern versions of the symbols have have been designed. Millennial Lotería includes Las Bitcoins and El Manbun; a Covidinspired game includes pandemic
references, and a Google-Doodle version includes El Buscador (the search engine) and El Emoji. Netflix is producing a family adventure “Lotería” movie starring Eugenio Derbez.
The most delectable version is certainly Tracey Maurer’s Lotería de Comida. The San Antonio-based professional food photographer has been fascinated with the game and iconic images for decades. When the Covid pandemic slowed her business, she decided to reimagine the traditional deck with images of some of San Antonio’s favorite foods. Using photo-layering techniques, she created large canvas artworks of Lotería cards with her own Mexican food-related images. Researching the history of the game, she went on to assemble an entire 54-card deck and tablas in English and Spanish versions.
The striking images range from El Café and El Tomate to Patas de Pollo (chicken feet—a traditional delicacy). Menudo, marranitos (little pig cookies) and calaveras (skull-shaped sugar cookies) are included—each with a light-hearted verse. For La Barbacoa, pictured with a popular Big Red soda, she wrote:
“Pop culture embraces this rich savory beef,
Was once steamed in a pit while wrapped in a leaf.”
Maurer’s Lotería game and her artworks are available online and at Mockingbird Handprints in Blue Star. She is also a featured vendor at Estancia del Norte Hotel’s Regalo Boutique and at their Holiday Bazaar, Dec. 3-5—an appetizing way to start the holidays.
WRITER’S BIO
Susan Yerkes is an award-winning journalist and travel writer based in San Antonio. She loves Mexican cuisine and Lotería. Her middle name really is Gamble.
Healing Lotería
Xelena González, a San Antonio-based author, was also inspired to create by Lotería. “I’ve always been curious about the images and characters—who they are, what they are doing, how they interact,” she said. Her new book, “Lotería Remedios” (remedies), weaves them into charming stories with positive quotations channeling the healing curandera traditions of female ancestors. For example, for El Corazon (The Heart): “What is stronger than the human heart, which shatters over and over, and still lives” – Rupi Kaur. The book’s messages can be coupled with the traditional Don Clemente Lotería deck for tarot-type readings or used as personal affirmations. The book, “Lotería Remedios,” packaged with the Lotería deck, is available at The Twig bookstore in Pearl and online.
RIVER WALK LIGHTS
NOVEMBER 12-JANUARY 10 These world-famous Holiday lights are a gift to the public from the San Antonio River Walk Association and the City of San Antonio. A Christmas tradition since 1975, over 100,000 lights are draped over the bald cypress trees that line the River Walk, illuminating buildings and pathways and providing a spectacular display. The Holiday lights stretch from the downtown portion of the River Walk all the way to the Pearl District one mile north and shine brilliantly from 5:30pm to 8:00am daily during the holiday season.
FORD HOLIDAY BOAT CAROLING
DECEMBER 2-23, 2021 Celebrate the timeless tradition of spreading joy with a San Antonio twist. Sing in the holidays by caroling with friends and family from your private, one-hour rented boat on the River Walk, and encourage spectators along the banks of the river to join in the fun as you drift by!
Caroling boats are decorated with lights and holiday bling and include a driver, a USB loaded with popular Christmas music and folders with music lyrics. Each boat can accommodate a maximum of 15 people (children under the age of 2 are not counted toward boat capacity). Other types of festive holiday music such as mariachis, bell-ringers and bands are also welcome to book a caroling boat.
With two timeslots on Mondays through Thursdays and three on Fridays through Sundays, merry songs fill every evening during the holiday season.
FORD FIESTA DE LAS LUMINARIAS
DECEMBER 3-19, 2021 Experience the holiday ambience of the San Antonio River Walk as you stroll along the lush banks guided by more than 2,000 glowing luminarias— the traditional Mexican Christmas lantern originally consisting of a candle set in sand inside a small bag. This centuries-old tradition that symbolically marks the “lighting of the way” for the Holy Family begins at dusk Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays for three weekends in December.
