María de Jesús Nolasco Elías (b. December 8, 1944 - d. 2000) was a Mexican potter from Ocumicho, Michoacán, a town noted for the creation of colorful ceramic figurines.[1]
She learned the craft from another Ocumicho potter named Marcelino Vicente.[1]
Her works show imagination, for example the creation of devils emerging from flames, animals devouring each other, images from the life of Christ with indigenous elements and even a representation of the Last Supper, with Jesus eating a watermelon. She also created mermaids, smiling sun faces, portraits of real people and trees of life.[1]
Nolasco Elías's pieces were both made with molds and by hand, using local clays, polishing dried pieces with a stone.[1]
Her work was shown at the Museo de Arte Moderno in Mexico City in 1993, as well as at various exhibitions outside Mexico. She was named a “grand master” by the Fomento Cultural Banamex in 2001.[1]