Natalie Gonzalez learned to make tsikuri, or ‘God’s Eyes,’ as a child in a Guadalajara, Mexico school. As an adult in San Diego, she turned back to the vibrant, concentric squares of yarn ...

My head danced with the possibilities of what I would make — tie dye, macramé, black light art etc. Christie Kelley, an event organizer, asked me to bring God’s Eyes (yarn wrapped around sticks).

People made the ornaments to place on an altar with the hope God would watch over and protect them. In some places, the central eye is woven when a child is born, with additional yarn added each ...