A new exhibit at the Consulate of Mexico in Albuquerque focuses on a storied Mexican folk art tradition that features fantastical creatures.
“Alebrijes: A Linares Family Tradition,” showcases brightly colored statues made from cartonería, or papier-mâché and decorated with intricate Zapotec and Mixtec patterns. The exhibit comes from the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe and will also travel across the Southwest.
Alebrijes are imaginative sculptures that combine features of multiple animals traditionally made from papier-mâché, wood, or other elements. Patricia Pinzón, Mexican Consul in New Mexico, said the art form blends imagination with cultural identity.
“Just creating this mix of colors and expressions, lions, tigers and other fantastic animals that have no explanation, but that also explains that our culture and our imagination is just as profound as the art that we are gonna see in those alebrijes,” Pinzón said.
The exhibit features work from the Linares family, one of the most renowned names in Mexican folk art. The tradition began with Pedro Linares, who is said to have dreamed about the colorful figures that had a body of one animal and a head of another.
Pinzón said that the family’s influence has helped bring alebrijes to a worldwide audience.
“Their legacy is that it was not only one person, but a whole family, three generations of this family, creating the alebrijes, multiplying the alebrijes effect throughout the world,” she said. “And now these beautiful, colorful figures are just everywhere.”
In addition to sculptures, the exhibit includes interactive and educational elements. Visitors can design their own alebrijes digitally and leave memories and thoughts in a guest book.
Pinzón hopes it inspires curiosity and cultural pride among visitors.
“It will allow many visitors that we receive every day to look at the richness of our traditions, of our culture, of our artwork,” she said. “And it will also allow for Mexican nationals who visit the consulate to have these various very special connections to our country through art.”
The exhibit features six original Alebrijes along with sketches and videos of the artistic process. There will be a grand opening Tuesday from 5 to 7 p.m. with curators Nora Dolan and Martha Turok, as well as members of the Linares family. The consulate is located at 1610 4th St. NW in Albuquerque.
Separately, a touring exhibit will bring giant alebrijes statues to downtown Albuquerque starting June 17. "Fantastic Animals from Mexico: Alebrijes and Nahuales" features statues 15 to 20 feet high.