The Oaxaca region is also known for Alebrijes, fantastical hand carved animals painted in a whimsical fashion. The word alebrijes is pronounced all-lay-bree-hays. We had seen Alebrijes before in Puerto Vallarta, but we knew that Oaxaca was the epicenter for this art.
The history of Alebrijes is pretty amazing. In the 1930s Mexican artist Pedro Linares was quite ill, and he had a feverish dream where he saw weird creatures with amazing coloration.
These fantasy creatures in his dream were all shouting one word, “Alebrijes”. He began creating these fantastical animals in his Mexico City studio using papier-mâché. An artisan from Oaxaca saw these, and decided to create them from wood, as carving wooden animals was a long tradition in Oaxaca.
We were able to visit two workshops that make Alebrijes, one in Arrazola and the other in San Martín Tilcajete. We learned how they are first carved from copal wood, aged to allow the wood to dry, and then painted in fantastical colors and designs. The painting is amazingly detailed, and some pieces can take months to carve and paint. So the pieces can be expensive.
First, here are pictures of Alebrijes being made.
Beginners simply apply a base coat of white paint to the wood.
Take your daughter to work day…
One color at a time…
Using a needle as a very fine hypodermic paintbrush.
This piece is not wood, but a copper bell.
Very fine, detailed work.
Painting an owl. 
Painting a coyote.
Detail work on the coyote.
More detail on the coyote. Lots of detail work.
Here are some pictures of completed works of art.
Notice the technique of applying paint thickly in certain places, to provide texture.
This squirrel is 33,000 pesos, which is $1637 right now. The pieces we bought were quite a bit less expensive…
This magical horse is amazing.
Notice the detail work on the eye and the face.
David,
Wow! Phenomenal photos. It was fun to relive our trip through your eyes. I’m glad you had such a wonderful time.
I love all these photos – and you, David!