San Martin Tilcajete, Mexico

It would have been easy to pass by San Martin Tilcajete if I didn’t discover that this small village, off the main road, was well-known for its colorful hand-carved figurines called alebrijes.

(Photo by Carl Campbell on Unplash)

Anyone familiar with Disney’s movie Coco, which is about the celebration of Día de los Muertos, would have noticed two alebrijes featured prominently: Pepita, a large winged jaguar with vibrant feathers, and Dante, a small goofy dog with a long, curly tongue.

Alebrijes are whimsical sculptures of fantastical creatures, often featuring a combination of real and imaginary animals. These sculptures are usually carved from copal wood and meticulously painted with intricate patterns and designs. While they are not officially part of Día de los Muertos traditions, their fabulous and cheery designs have made their way into the celebrations.

While woodcarving has been part of San Martin for a long time, the whimsical woodcarving style is credited to Manuel Jiménez, a local artist who adapted it from papier-mache sculptures pioneered in 1936 by Pedro Linares. The term alebrijes is also attributed to Pedro, a Mexico City artist who allegedly hallucinated fantastical creatures with bright colors and exaggerated features after suffering a serious illness. When he recovered, he was inspired to realize these creatures in papier-mache and paint them vividly.

Sometime in 1980, Manuel attended a workshop where Pedro Linares was demonstrating his designs, and he took those concepts and applied them to woodcarving, creating the Oaxaca alebrijes. Manuel’s captivating designs garnered attention and popularity in his community. His work inspired others in the village, sparking a growth of alebrije craftsmanship and establishing the art form as part of San Martin’s cultural heritage, which later was recognized as a form of Mexican folk art. They are often seen in festivals and parades.

The elaborate details on the alebrijes are achieved by applying vibrant colors using fine brushes and repeating dots, lines, and geometric motifs with small implements. The inspiration for the patterns is often drawn from indigenous Zapotec designs. These sculptures embody the fusion of indigenous and contemporary artistic traditions in Mexico.