We love Fileteados, the stylized ornamental drawing and lettering that can be spotted in all sorts places in Buenos Aires, from grocery signs to bus stops. That’s why we chose them to adorn our new alfajores gift box. Fileteador artist and Porteño, Gustavo Ferrari, hand painted our Wooden Table Baking Co. sign for our Oakland headquarters (below), and our gift boxes now also sport his original design (above).
While fileteado is the type of artistic drawing; the lines in fileteado style are called filetes. They are usually highly-stylized, colorful lines tracing flowered, climbing plants surrounding or decorated by popular sayings, quotes or poetry. They have been part of the culture of Buenos Aires since the beginnings of the 20th century, when European immigrants brought over elements of the art form. These mixed with local traditions creating the unique Argentine style we see today. You can read more about the history of fileteado on wikipedia.
Another form of firuletes are drawn by Argentine Tango dancers with their feet. My wife and I are both Tango dancers, and earlier this year, we were able to host one of our all time favorite Tango dancers, Soledad. Here's a video of Soledad dancing with a great local teacher, Lissette, in Oakland.
Abrazos y Besos,
Andrés
