CultureThe Art of Alebrijes in ArrazolaOaxaca

Santa Cruz Xoxocotlán is a municipality in the State of Oaxaca, located in the region of the central valleys, and has several smaller communities such as San Antonio Arrazola located 10 km from the highway towards Zaachila.
Commonly known as  Arrazola”, this place is famous for the manufacturing of ‘Alebrijes’, Mexican crafts invented by Pedro Linares Lopez in Mexico City in 1936.
These crafts are made with different types of paper or carved wood and painted with bright, vibrant colors. They most often represent an imaginary animal composed of physiognomical elements of several different animals.
Although various techniques can be used to produce Alebrijes, in San Antonio Arrazola  wood carving is the preferred technique that is a knowledge from ancient Zapotec traditions that is passed down from generation to generation.
Here the ingenuity of the artisans is reflected in the copal wood to create this fantastic zoology ...  Alebrijes  are displayed and sold in the homes of the artisans.

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