Have you seen the Árbol de la Vida? It has a story to tell.
In the Spring of 2017, San Antonians from all walks of life gathered to share their stories and, over the course of two years, their stories were transformed into clay structures that now hang from the massive Árbol de la Vida – tree of life – just off a trail between the San Antonio River and Mission Espada. The tree is based on the Mexican craft tradition inspired by personal and spiritual tales.
The artist behind the project is Margarita Cabrera. The piece is 40 feet tall and 80 feet across, and it holds 700 ceramic sculptures made by community members. The little ones were mostly made by elementary and middle school children. The largest weighs about 500 pounds. It was unveiled in May, 2019.
In Mexico, these tees were originally made to illustrate Bible stories but evolved to tell family stories. The stories in this massive Árbol tell the stories of the ranching families that lived and still live in the area around the mission.