Commercial illustrator Fritz (Fred) Alseth (1924-2006) resided at Lake Chapala in the late 1980s. During his time at the lake, he provided illustrations for El Ojo del Lago, and also for a series of cards promoting the local area, from Chapala to San Juan Cosalá, with an emphasis on hotels and tourist locations.
Drawing by Fritz Alseth. 1988.
Alseth’s sketches for the cards are all dated 1988. They provide a fun way to look back at what the area was like at that time. The images in the gallery are arranged in approximate order from west to east, starting with San Juan Cosalá and ending with Chapala Haciendas. Enjoy!
Note regarding copyright. Attempts to identify the copyright owner of these images have been unsuccessful. Use of the low resolution images in this post is believed to fall under the fair dealing exemption, section 29 of copyright legislation in Canada.
Acknowledgments
- My sincere thanks to business consultant Alejandro Wagner (the owner of Mi México store) and to fellow writer and long-time Ajijic resident Dale Hoyt Palfrey for supplying the illustrations used in this post.
My 2022 book Lake Chapala: A Postcard History uses reproductions of more than 150 vintage postcards to tell the incredible story of how Lake Chapala became an international tourist and retirement center.
Comments, corrections and additional material are welcome, whether via the comments feature or email.
Tony Burton’s books include “Lake Chapala: A Postcard History” (2022), “Foreign Footprints in Ajijic” (2022), “If Walls Could Talk: Chapala’s historic buildings and their former occupants” (2020), (available in translation as “Si Las Paredes Hablaran”), “Mexican Kaleidoscope” (2016), and “Lake Chapala Through the Ages” (2008).
2 Responses to “Fritz Alseth’s whimsical sketches of Chapala and Ajijic in 1988”
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Oh wow–loved the sketches but Mr. Burton, you are now making me old–ha! Finally someone I predate in that area. Thanks for this.
Bill, You and me both . . . lol, Tony