Oaxaca alebrije artists exhibit their fantastical sculptures in San Francisco

Eight elephantine Mexican alebrije and nahual statues person arrived successful downtown San Francisco, California, wherever they are portion of an grounds successful Yerba Buena Gardens, 1 of the city’s astir prestigious taste centers.

The grounds “Fantastic Beasts of Mexico: Alebrijes and Nahuales,” which opened to the nationalist connected Saturday, features six-meter-tall sculptures made by artisans from Oaxaca and the Mexico City metropolitan area. They are based connected animals and creatures of Mexican legend, story and tradition.

A well-lit alebrije contributed to the ambiance of the Vive Latino euphony festival past March successful Mexico City (Edgar Negrete Lira/Cuartoscuro)

The binational task was curated by Carlomagno Pedro Martínez, manager of the Oaxaca State Museum of Popular Art (MEAPO), with task absorption by Romáin Greco. The postulation includes works by the precocious masters Angélico Jiménez and Constantino Blas from Oaxaca state, arsenic good arsenic the surviving artists Adrián Xuana Luis, Margarito Melchor, Efraín Fuentes, María Jiménez Ojeda and Leonardo Linares.

“Once again, Mexico is celebrated by artisans who amusement the taste and creator individuality of our country,” reads a post connected the MEAPO societal media page. “We congratulate Romáin Greco and our director, Carlomagno Pedro Martínez, for making this task a world for our artisan community.” 

The grounds is escaped to be and volition tally successful San Francisco from May 10 to June 22 earlier it travels to different U.S. cities, specified arsenic San Jose, Reno, New York and Fresno implicit the coming months. 

Each sculpture, made from fiberglass and different materials, weighs astir 550 kilograms. They basal connected bases that person built-in star powerfulness truthful that the artwork is lit astatine each hours.

The alebrijes correspond carnal tone guides, portion the nahuales bespeak “shapeshifting indigenous spiritual practitioners,” according to the nonprofit Yerba Buena Gardens Conservancy.

There is simply a smiling dragon-like carnal with immense wings and a tail, a feline with a agelong beard and mustache and an armadillo with wings and a protruding tongue, among others. 

According to task manager Romáin Greco, the “exhibition pays tribute to the exceptional craftsmanship of Mexican artisans and celebrates Mexico’s affluent taste heritage.”

The traveling grounds was made imaginable acknowledgment to astir US $75,000 successful backing from respective sponsors, including the Yerba Buena Partnership, Yerba Buena Ice Skating and Bowling Center, Children’s Creativity Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the Mexican Consulate and Marina Security Services.

“Yerba Buena Gardens is the psyche of downtown San Francisco and opportunities specified arsenic these travel erstwhile successful a decennary oregon so,” said Seve Ghose, Executive Director of the Yerba Buena Conservancy. “This juncture is 1 which San Franciscans should avail and wage tribute to artisans who connection a cacophony of colors and shapes that make memories that are heart-warming and transport 1 to a spot of curiosity and discovery.” 

With reports from Imparcial Oaxaca and San Francisco Examiner