Amate painting developed in two directions. First, some amate creations are highly original works of art and are sold to relatively exclusive buyers. Many of these amate works are detailed black and white sketches, rather than colored works. Far more common, however, is the second branch of amate painting, which is largely for tourists. This kind of amate is sold on the streets and in the artisan markets of many Mexican cities and in Olivera Street in Los Angeles.
Themes tend to be highly generic and the artistic quality is usually no better than satisfactory.
Low and high quality amate nonetheless share a common iconography. The most frequent topics are village scenes, local religious festivals, and weddings. These pictures draw upon the San Agustin landscape of river, cactus, wild animals, and vivid stars. Some of the more sharply drawn high quality works resemble older Arabic miniatures in style. One branch of amate portrays animals, usually birds, with twisting, sinuous lines and sharp, vivid colors.