Soldaderas to Amazonas: Escaramuzas Charras exhibit honors rodeo history and culture
FORT WORTH — Just across the street from the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo grounds is the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, where legends in rodeo history continue to be remembered.
Soldaderas to Amazonas: Escaramuzas Charras is a first-of-its-kind exhibit that shows how the roots between charreada and rodeo run deep.
"No one has given this much breadth and depth to exploring what these women do and their history and their challenges," said Diana Vela Ph.D.
Vela is the associate director of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame. She is the principal investigator, researcher, and curator of the exhibit in collaboration with Constance Jaeggi.
The exhibition aims to shed light on the hard work and cultural significance of female "charrería," a traditional Mexican equestrian sport that combines horsemanship, roping, and cattle management, often performed during festive events and competitions.
Vela hopes that people "will look under the dress" and see more of the skills the athletes build as equestrians.
About the exhibit
The exhibit consists of two galleries showcasing the craftsmanship of the dresses, the skills displayed at competitions and stories from women in the sport.
The first part of the exhibit includes multiple dresses and trajes from varying teams across the U.S. The museum reached out to various artisans in Mexico in preparation for the exhibit and were sent many of the dresses and sombreros now seen on display.
"They were very happy to able to share their craft with a larger audience," Vela said.
One of these dresses sent from Mexico includes a custom garment made specifically for the exhibit by Lolis Galvan. The dark blue fabric is contrasted with white lace, pearls and embroidery. Vela explained that although the dress was made for the exhibit, it is unable to be worn during a competition due to the sheen of the fabric.
Also seen in the exhibit is a uniform from North Texas team, Tierra Azteca. The team from Midlothian is shown performing escaramuza maneuvers in a video above the dress. The team went to compete in Mexico as the U.S. national champions in 2023.
In another part of the exhibit is the poetics gallery. This is a series of photographs taken by artist Constance Jaeggi. She photographed teams and recorded interviews with the women she was taking pictures of. From this, she compiled an oral history of the women in escaramuza charra.
Jaeggi also collaborated with 2023 Texas State Poet Laureate, ire'ne lara silva, and UCLA Writing Project fellow Angelina Sáenz to compose poetry to accompany her work.
History of escaramuza charra
"So often, especially with women, their history gets lost," Vela said when asked about the significance of the exhibit for women in rodeo. "I think we're able, in large part, to reclaim some of that history for them."
"This community charrería, the idea is very much a masculine kind of community. And so these women have excelled at creating a space for themselves and will continue to do so in homage to those brave," Vela added.
The first case of the exhibition starts with a reproduction of a version of a "soldadera" or soldier uniform.
"Many of the things that the escaramuza incorporate into their at her sister's stem from the soldaderas," Vela explained. "Those brave women who fought in the Mexican Revolution. These are women who gave their lives for Mexico. And I think if we don't tell this story and continue to uncover these incredible women, then we're really only getting part of the story."
The first escaramuza team in the U.S. was from California. The team, named Las Angelitas, is still active today. Their "traje" or suit uniform can be seen on display in the exhibit alongside the adelita dress style for the team.
An escaramuza competition consists of two parts, "la punta," translated as the point, and the team routine. More information on what a competition consists of can be found here.
Continuing traditions
"There's over 130 teams in the United States," Vela said. The museum has a grant initiative where selected teams that apply are awarded $2,000 to help with competition costs.
"These are our teams who are not getting the financial support that other sports get, certainly not within us rodeo," Vela said. "We hope as a museum and a place that supports women to be able to insert ourselves in that conversation and help with finances."
Travel costs and finding resources for U.S. teams can be complicated. The first U.S. team to make it to the finals in Mexico were Los Campos B from California. A dress from the team's uniforms can be seen on display in at the museum. According to Vela, the team had to compete with rented horses due to the lack of resources and funding. Despite their challenges, they were able to make it to the finals.
"I think now more than ever, it's so important to share other cultures and traditions and in specific with rodeo," Vela said.
"And I think in the United States, we tend to think, oh, you know, it was created here and it wasn't. The roots are obviously very clearly in Mexico. And then before that in Spain. And I also believe that our differences are what make us stronger. And, I think that this exhibition comes at just a perfect time for not only our city, and the larger state, but also the country as well."
Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo
The museum not only supports U.S. teams by offering grants, but it also partners with the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo.
"There are two days of escaramuza championships where each individual winner will receive a check for $2,000," Vela said.
The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo hosted its fourth year of escaramuza charra competitions in 2024. The museum provides buckles for first-place competition winners in both the adult and youth categories, as well as camafeos and pins.
Paola Pimienta, the U.S. ambassador for charrería, is a judge during the Fort Worth Stock Show escaramuza events. She was also a consultant during the creation of the exhibition. Her dress and traje can be seen in the exhibit beneath a photo of her.
In 2025, the events are scheduled for Feb. 1-2 at the Will Rogers Coliseum. The Youth Escaramuza Competition & Youth Charro Cala Competition will begin at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday. The adult competition will begin at 10 a.m. on Sunday.
