Oaxacan Wood Carving Ram Lauro Ramirez Mexican Folk Art Alebrije

  

This handsome ram was hand carved by Lauro Ramirez of Oaxaca, Mexico and nicely painted by his wife, Griselda. They are second generation carvers, with Lauro being the son of Pedro Ramirez, one of the original carvers. This figure is 10" high, 7" wide and 4 1/2 deep and its ears and tail are removable for safer packing.

A bit of history about Oaxacan woodcarvings. Oaxacan wood carvings, often called "alebrijes", (al-ah-bree-hayz), are a new and unique art form that originated in Oaxaca, Mexico around 40-50 years ago and are gradually becoming known and collected throughout the world. The extraordinary Disney/PIXAR movie, "COCO", which featured alebrijes, has now introduced these amazing spirit-animals to millions of people.

The first alebrijes came about in the 1930's, with the Mexican paper mache artist, Pedro Linares, making figures from his dreams - and he called them "alebrijes". Then in the 1970's Manuel Jimenez, a wood carver from Oaxaca, began replicating these colorful creatures that were full of personality as carved and painted wooden figures. As the popularity of these figures spread, many other people in Manuel's village and other nearby villages began making them. Today approximately 200 families in the Oaxaca Valley are making these fantastic wood carvings.

The item "OAXACAN WOOD CARVING RAM LAURO RAMIREZ MEXICAN FOLK ART ALEBRIJE" is in sale since Wednesday, May 5, 2021. This item is in the category "Collectibles\Cultures & Ethnicities\Latin American\Mexico\Folk Art".

The seller is "oaxacadog" and is located in Berkeley, California. This item can be shipped to United States.

1. Culture: Mexican
2. Featured Refinements: Oaxacan Wood Carving