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"Cascade Squares" ∙ Amate Art 70"x23.5" (Unframed)
$285.00
Story
Most wall art is printed in a factory. Amate is made into existence by hand.
Jonote bark is carried down from the Sierra Norte mountains, then boiled for 8 to 10 hours in lime and ash until the fibers are soft as cloth. Each strip is separated by hand, sorted by length, then woven — thread by thread — into lattice patterns, spirals, and openwork designs. The weaving alone takes up to two weeks.
Once the pattern is set, a river stone fuses the fibers together. Too hard and the openwork tears. Too soft and the sheet falls apart. The design isn't printed on the paper; the paper is the art.
The artist, Maria, learned this craft from her grandmother at age eight in San Pablito, Puebla. Five generations. 120 years. Every piece is signed and ships with a Certificate of Authenticity from the San Pablito artisan collective.
See The Entire Amate Making Process →
Product Details
Our largest piece at nearly six feet wide — cascading square patterns in two-tone bark that span an entire wall. A true centerpiece for open living spaces, lobbies, or collectors.
Dimensions: 70"x23.5"
Material: Jonote tree bark
Color: Crème / beige + brown
Artist: Maria Luna · San Pablito, Puebla
Technique: Calado (traditional bark weaving)
Includes: Signed artwork · Certificate of Authenticity
Presentation: Unframed
Each piece is stone-pressed by hand. Expect natural variations in tone and fiber pattern — this is the mark of real amate. No two are identical.
About the Artisan
Care
Amate bark paper is naturally durable — artworks from San Pablito have been collected for decades without deterioration.
Display: Hang in any dry interior space. Avoid direct sunlight and high-humidity rooms (bathrooms, saunas).
Cleaning: Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth. Never use water or cleaning products on the bark surface.
Framing tip: For unframed pieces, a 0.5–1″ mat reveal gives a gallery presentation. Open-face framing (no glass) is the museum standard for textured fiber art, it lets the 3D texture stand out.
Printed care instructions are included with each piece.
Shipping and Returns
Each piece ships carefully layered between thick protective cardboard to ensure it arrives safely.
US orders: Free shipping on orders over $50. Standard delivery in 2–3 weeks.
International: Available to 20+ countries. Rates calculated at checkout.
If your piece arrives damaged, contact us within 7 days with photos and we'll make it right. Because each artwork is handcrafted to order, we cannot accept returns for change of mind.
Framing This Piece
Everything you need to frame it.
We ship this piece unframed so you can choose the frame that fits your wall, your style, your room. Below is what we did in our photos — if you want to recreate that look exactly. However, we've seen Amate pieces go up in thick frames, thin frames, no mat, wide mat. It's your call.
Art Size
70″ × 23.5″
Frame Used in Photos
77″ × 30.5″ outer
Mat Width
1.5″ each side
The art is 70″ × 23.5″. In our photos, we used a
77″ × 30.5″ outer frame with a 1.5″ mat — If you want to
recreate that look, just bring those dimensions to any frame shop. That said,
we've seen customers go wider on the mat, tighter on the frame, even no mat
at all.
We go glass-free — no glare, nothing between you and the texture,
and the bark's natural depth reads exactly as it should. That's what you see in
our photos. That said, plenty of our customers frame with glass and love it too,
If you do go with glass, ask for
anti-reflective or museum glass — it keeps the texture visible
rather than washing it out.
In our photos we used thin black and dark brown wood frames.
Thin profiles (¾″ to 1½″) tend to
keep the focus on the art itself, and warm tones play nicely with the bark
grain. But honestly, we've seen Amate go up in chunkier frames and look
great too. Whatever fits your room and style.
Any local frame shop can do this. If you want to
match our photos exactly, you can tell them:
"70 × 23.5 art, 1.5 inch mat, open-face, 77 × 30.5 outer frame"
Or just bring the piece in and go from there — most framers are great at
suggesting options once they see the artwork in person.