San Miguel Women:Marina Fernández de Córdova—Taking Mexico’s Master Artisans to the World
San Miguel de Allende has a magical way of bringing the right people and opportunities together at exactly the right moment. For Marina Fernández de Córdova, arriving here felt like one of those moments—where her Spanish heritage, passion for artistry, and love of design came together with a new sense of purpose.
Marina arrived in Mexico in 2013 from Spain, where she had spent more than two decades working in interior design and creating hand-painted furniture. What began as a scouting trip before a planned journey to Bali and Indonesia became something entirely unexpected. Drawn to Mexico’s craftsmanship, color, history, and warmth, she realized she had found the place for her next chapter.
San Miguel offered everything she had been searching for—a beautiful, walkable city alive with creativity, international energy, and a remarkable sense of community. Here, her sophisticated artistic eye and entrepreneurial spirit found new purpose. She opened Marquesa de Mancera, a gallery whose name reflects both the Spanish title she inherited from her father and its historic connection to Mexico. An earlier Marquesa de Mancera, Leonor Carreto, became an important early patron of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, one of 17th-century Mexico’s greatest poets and intellectuals. The Marquesa’s early recognition and support helped give this brilliant, independent woman a place to develop her voice in a world that rarely made room for women like them
That connection between Spain and Mexico became the soul of Marina’s work. Through Marquesa de Mancera, she brings together the refined world of design with the ancestral techniques of Mexico’s master artisans. She travels to workshops and remote communities across the country, building personal relationships with the people behind the pieces and helping their work reach collectors around the world.
Marina’s story is one of connection, purpose, and service. San Miguel gave her meaningful friendships, unexpected opportunities, and the ideal place to transform her love of beautiful objects into a mission: preserving Mexico’s artistic traditions, supporting the communities that carry them, and ensuring their stories continue for generations.
Tell us about the path that brought you to the work you do today. What inspired you to begin, and how has your vision evolved?
I arrived in Mexico in 2013 from southern Spain, where I had worked in interior design and owned a furniture business. My children had grown and left home, and I felt that it was my time to begin a new chapter.
I had planned to travel to Bali and Indonesia, drawn by their traditions of handmade artistry and craftsmanship. Before going, I came to Mexico to visit a friend and explore the country. By my fourth week, while staying in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, I knew I wanted to stay. I never made it to Bali or Indonesia—Mexico had captured me completely. I could feel that my future was here and that it held possibilities I had not yet imagined.
I returned to Spain to pack my life into a shipping container. During that transition, my father passed away, and I inherited the title of Marquesa de Mancera. It was a profound moment of loss and change, but it also deepened my connection to the path unfolding before me. The title carried its own history in Mexico, creating an unexpected bridge between my Spanish heritage and the country that was drawing me in. Eventually, I returned with my belongings and my 12-year-old dog, trusting that somehow all these pieces were leading me exactly where I was meant to be.
I wanted to live near Mexico City without being in such a large metropolis, and San Miguel immediately felt right. It was beautiful, walkable, creative, and international—a place where inspiring people and opportunities seemed to appear at precisely the right moment. After settling here, I opened Marquesa de Mancera.
The gallery’s name connected my new life in Mexico with my family’s history in Spain. The story of Leonor Carreto, an earlier Marquesa de Mancera and patron of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, made that connection even more meaningful. Through these two remarkable women, the title created a powerful link between the two countries I now call home.
Within my first year, I began discovering extraordinary Mexican artisans—ironworkers, carpenters, ceramicists, textile artists, and many other craftspeople. After two years, their work became the true heart of the gallery. What began as a beautiful design space evolved into something much more purposeful: a way to preserve, refine, and share the work of Mexico’s great masters of folk art.
What role has San Miguel played in your success? How have its people, culture, creativity, or sense of place influenced your work?
Moving to San Miguel was the best decision of my life. From the beginning, possibilities opened naturally. I found my way here, and people helped me.
Even today, I find it incredible that you can meet people from all over the world in this small town. I also found a wonderful group of women—artists, creatives, and friends—who have become like family. That has been one of the greatest privileges of my life here. What do you need when beginning again? Girlfriends.
San Miguel also gave me the audience for the gallery. Visitors were interested in Mexican craftsmanship, but I felt that the art was not always displayed beautifully or accompanied by the stories it deserved. Many people selling these pieces did not know who had made them, where they came from, or what their symbols and techniques meant.
I wanted to change that. At Marquesa de Mancera, the presentation is refined, but the story is equally important. My staff knows the history behind the pieces because we are not simply selling objects. We are representing people, communities, and traditions.
Through San Miguel, I have also met wonderful collectors and friends—particularly from Texas—who have helped me introduce this work to audiences beyond Mexico. The city has opened doors I could never have imagined.
What opportunities has San Miguel created for you, and how has your work grown beyond the city?
I travel throughout Mexico to fairs, workshops, homes, and communities in Guerrero, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Michoacán, and many other regions. Some are extremely remote and, at times, difficult to reach. These are not simply business relationships. I know the artisans personally, understand their families, and learn the stories behind their work.
Some of the techniques they use are between 500 and 1,000 years old. Preserving them does not mean that the work can never evolve. I collaborate with artisans to adapt certain colors, proportions, and designs for contemporary homes without losing the cultural identity or essence of the original work.
My support also extends to the practical side of their businesses. I help younger artisans learn how to create invoices, understand taxes, complete paperwork, ship internationally, present their work professionally, and reach new markets. I encourage them to learn from the older generations before that knowledge disappears.
The work has reached collectors well beyond San Miguel. I have exhibited in Mexico City, including at Casa Palacio in El Palacio de Hierro, and through pop-ups in Texas, Dallas, Round Top, and other destinations. I have taken pieces into private homes and introduced them directly to collectors.
San Miguel gave me the relationships and confidence to take this work further. In return, I hope the gallery gives visitors a deeper understanding of Mexican folk art and the people who create it. It is like traveling throughout Mexico without leaving San Miguel.
What has been one of the most meaningful moments in your journey?
The most rewarding part of this work is seeing a tradition continue through another generation and for artisans receiving the recognition that they deserve.
Doña Cruz, a ceramicist in Michoacán, reached a point when she could no longer continue producing her work. Her son was 19, and I encouraged him to learn from her and carry the family business forward. Today, he leads it. Seeing her knowledge and legacy continue through him makes me incredibly proud.
Another relationship especially close to my heart is with Juana Gómez Ramírez, a Maya artist from Chiapas. Juana is known for her extraordinary clay jaguars—powerful symbols of protection, strength, and Maya culture. Her workshop supports approximately 14 members of her family, so every opportunity she receives reaches far beyond a single artist.
Juana’s greatest dream was to take her work to the International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe. Making that happen required overcoming countless hurdles, from finding a sponsor to completing the paperwork and arranging the complicated shipment of one of her monumental jaguars.
After everything we worked through together, seeing Juana arrive in Santa Fe and share her art on that international stage was profoundly emotional. Her jaguar ultimately sold for approximately $20,000—an incredible achievement for Juana and her family.
It was not simply about selling a beautiful piece. It was about watching an artist’s dream become real, seeing her talent receive the recognition it deserved, and knowing that the opportunity would touch every person who depends on her workshop. Those are the moments that give my work its deepest meaning.
What comes next? How do you hope your work—and San Miguel’s place on the world stage—will continue to grow over the next few years?
As an entrepreneur, you have to reinvent yourself constantly. The way people discover and purchase art has changed enormously, particularly through social media. A business must evolve with it.
I plan to keep the gallery because the location is exceptional and it is where I meet so many of my clients. At the same time, pop-ups and sales through social media will become an increasingly important part of the business. They allow me to reach collectors in different cities without the overhead of another permanent location. Rent, labor, gasoline, and shipping have all become much more expensive, so we must find new ways of working.
I manifested this next stage last year. I knew I wanted to take the gallery to another level, collaborate more, and reach new audiences. Now the right people and opportunities are beginning to appear including developing collaborations with Casa de México in Madrid.
I have also noticed a younger group of collectors, both international and Mexican, becoming interested in Mexican folk art. That gives me hope. The future depends not only on younger artisans learning these techniques, but also on younger buyers understanding their value.
These pieces must continue to be made without losing their essence—and there must be a new generation ready to appreciate, collect, and preserve them.
Fast Five
One word to describe this chapter of your life? Flourishing. I have more energy, I am doing what I love, and I feel that I am being of service. I am making a difference in the community and connecting with real people—with humility, authenticity, and no ego.
Your favorite place in San Miguel to feel inspired? El Charco del Ingenio, the botanical garden . Some of the cacti are more than 200 years old, and the entire place has an incredible energy.
One local woman whose work you admire?
Mexican painter Mariló Carral, founder of Carral Espacio at Fábrica La Aurora.
The San Miguel experience every visitor should have?
Come to our gallery—it is like traveling throughout Mexico and discovering its great masters of folk art. Then sit in the Jardín and simply take in the moment. I also love Posada Corazón because it preserves the artistic, easygoing atmosphere of old San Miguel.
Complete this sentence: San Miguel is unlike anywhere else because…
It is a small, walkable village and an architectural jewel, with an extraordinary quality of life and fascinating people from all over the world.
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