Bolivian folk art is created in both urban and rural areas, and like the people of Bolivia themselves, it bears a strong indigenous imprint. Many contemporary works owe their current form to lengthy cultural processes over centuries, during which time local materials were worked, forms took shape, color codes were chosen, and iconographies defined. This cultural treasure is transmitted from generation to generation, and comprises a whole that brings us close to the aesthetic and symbolic world of cultures of the past and the present. Understanding the folk art produced in Bolivia today requires situating it in its cultural context and tracing its evolution through history. In other words, the whole in this case is greater than the sum of its parts: folk art objects are very much manifestations of the broader cultural developments from which they arise.
El arte popular boliviano se crea en las zonas urbanas y rurales. Muchas obras contemporáneas deben su forma actual a los prolongados procesos culturales durante siglos, en que los materiales locales fueron trabajados, las formas tomaba forma, los códigos de colores fueron escogidos y definidos iconografías. Esta riqueza cultural se transmite de generación en generación y consta de un conjunto que nos acerca al mundo estético y simbólico de culturas del pasado y del presente. Comprender el arte popular producido en Bolivia, hoy en día requiere situarlo en su contexto cultural y rastrear su evolución a través de la historia. En otras palabras, el todo en este caso es mayor que la suma de sus partes: objetos de arte popular son manifestaciones, en muy buena parte, de los desarrollos culturales más amplios que se presentan.
