Tactile Resistance: Marjorie Skouras

Why is it that out of limitless choices, we carry home from the beach a single stone? – Articles of Faith, Douglas Clark

Marjorie Skouras does not believe in a single anything. When you enter through the pale pink gateposts at Quinta Kookix, waves of henequen ripple towards the horizon on either side of the tidy gravel road. There is nothing to do but stop the car and exhale. Off in the distance, nestled in the agave, are small boxed buildings that shimmer like the inside of a shell. This is the world of designer and changemaker Marjorie Skouras.

When Marjorie and her husband Bruno Bardavid bought this land during the pandemic, they admittedly had no idea what they were doing. But the call of its wildness could not be quieted, and this time, Marjorie listened.

With 65 years, she has walked many paths, not all rewarding, but each formative to who she is today. “I always wanted to work as a designer, to create things, but my first husband didn’t think it was a real job. I’m much better at listening to my instincts now”, Marjorie said. Hanging above us is the chandelier that launched Marjorie’s career as a product designer. True to form, it is a thing of beauty, inspired by elements in nature and crafted from 2872 hand cut semi-precious turquoise stones. Twenty-five years later, the chandelier is still one of her most popular pieces.

“Mexico is a culture I’ve always been drawn to, spending much time here in the 80s and 90s,” Marjorie shared. “As a designer in LA, renovating a majestic colonial in Merida became a dream of mine, but once manifested, left me longing to create something more meaningful. Little did I know that this land, and the people who help us give it new life, would fill my own soul beyond measure.”

Outside the window, 84-year-old horticultural ‘brujo’ Don Alejandro, prunes the collection of medicinal Mayan plants that have become Marjorie’s newest obsession. She walks the land almost daily with Don Alejandro, who, along with being a renowned hunter and Jarana dancer, has an encyclopedic knowledge of the flora and fauna of the region.

A lull in conversation is soon filled with music drifting through the ceiba and henequen. The Kookix Music School that Marjorie and Bruno manifested into being is just a stone’s throw away, but classes are not yet in session. What we’re hearing instead is the musical accompaniment to the habanero planting from the next farm over.

For the Mexican people, music is like water to the fields. So, it was to music that Marjorie gravitated in her desire to be of service to their community in Dzemul.

Starting with 3 students, a few well-loved instruments and a plastic tarp, the school now has a dedicated building, string, percussion and wind instruments, and 15 budding young musicians, guided by Maestro Jose Luis Chan Sabido, former Director of the Symphony Orchestra of the Yucatan.

“Music is a way we can empower these kids with opportunities they might not have”, Marjorie said. “Their joy is contagious, and isn’t life all about joy?”

^{Tactile Resistance was published in the Hacienda Issue of Yucatan Magazine in November 2025. Many thanks to Creative Director & Photographer Patricia Robert and Lee Steele, Editorial Director, for the challenge to capture these five amazing women – in under 500 words! Much gratitude to (l to r) Marcela Diaz, Josefina Larrain, Marjorie Skouras, Angela Damman, and Elena Martínez Bolio – for giving me your time and trust. I encourage readers to find out more about these talented humans via their websites.}