CHICAGO– During COVID-19, when the world felt disconnected, Yanelet Delgado and her husband Marco Morales saw an opportunity. Both from Puebla, Mexico—a region known for its rich indigenous heritage and centuries-old craft traditions—they wanted to share artistry that most Americans had never seen.
So they started Galería 88 Artesanías. Their storefront, which opened earlier this year in Chicago’s Belmont Cragin neighborhood, gives them space to share the history embedded in each creation—lessons passed down through generations in Puebla’s villages, now finding new students in Chicago.
Among the crafts they showcase, amate paper represents a tradition perfected in Puebla’s remote villages, largely unknown beyond Mexico’s borders. This sacred paper, which is now the centerpiece of Galería 88, was once used by the Aztecs for records and religious purposes, according to Yanelet. It carries a resilient cultural thread that spans centuries.
“Our business is to educate people on the history of how papel amate came to be, what it was used for in the past, and how it’s transformed over the centuries as to what it is today,” Yanelet explains. She walks customers through the entire process: how artisans harvest bark from the Jonote tree, boil it until soft, work it into moldable strands, then rinse and smooth it using volcanic rock and orange peels. After sun-drying, each piece is decorated with hand-embroidered tenangos or symbolic cutouts—designs that carry meaning rooted in history.
Most of their art comes directly from Puebla, where family members and friends create each piece.
“A lot of the cutouts have significance—some reference crops that were grown in my mom’s house,” Yanelet says. “This art is very unique to that region.”
For Yanelet, who has lived in Chicago’s Belmont Cragin neighborhood for about 20 years, the gallery is a way to connect cultures, worlds, and people. Where she once felt the constant pull to leave her neighborhood for opportunities elsewhere, she now brings a piece of her culture and home.
“We have different types of arts that have a story behind each of the pieces,” she says. “If it’s on the table, it’s because there’s a story behind it and something meaningful that we have to tell to the public.”
Yanelet and Marco, sharing these stories has become deeply personal.
“I’m very proud of the fact that we’re actually bringing this art from our family here to Chicago,” Yanelet reflects. “We never just want you to walk away with just purchasing something and not understanding where it came from. That’s really part of our story.”
Publisher’s Notes: This story, among others, was produced by undergraduate students in the bilingual reporting class at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media & Integrated Marketing Communications. Led by Prof. Mei-Ling Hopgood, the class aims to help journalism students practice sensitive and ethical engagement and reporting with multicultural communities in Spanish and English.
Cover Photo: Yanelet Delgado (left) and Marco Morales (right) in front of their Galería 88 Artesanías stand at the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Expo.