Lizards and Bears!

August, 2012.  We are in the state of Oaxaca, in southern Mexico, looking for brilliant artisan crafts for Chiripa.

At Chiripa, you can spot beautifully carved and painted wooden lizards climbing the walls.  The lizards (and other whimsical alebrijes) are created by the husband-and-wife team of Oscar Carillo and Josefina Morales.  The couple work from their home in the village of Arrazola.  From the village, you can look up to see the heights of Monte Alban – the spectacular Zapotec ruins whose construction began around 500 BC.

Oscar is 43 years old and was born in Arrazola.  Josefina is from the state of Tabasco to the east, along the Gulf of Campeche.  The couple met when she was a passenger in the taxi that he was driving in the city of Oaxaca.  They have been married for about 22 years, and have 2 children.  They started producing and selling alebrijes shortly after they were married, to help support their family.  Business was slow at first, but grew over time as their work became known.

As a child, Oscar was more interested in soccer (futbol) than woodcarving.  He learned the wood-carving craft later, from his cousins, and found that he had a talent for it.  But it was Josefina who completed the artistic team.  Oscar creates graceful wooden figures, ready for life, and Josefina adds the living spark with her paint brushes.  “Neither of us could do it alone,” Oscar tells us in Spanish.  “Josefina is a very skilled painter, and she works hard at everything she does.”

For many years, only Oscar signed the completed pieces (the traditional practice for husband-and-wife teams in Mexico).  But at Chiripa’s suggestion, Josefina now signs them as well.  Josefina beams as she proudly adds her signature to each completed work.  Oscar beams too.

Josefina proudly signs a completed bear.

Oscar gets his ideas from the wood he carves.  He examines each piece of wood to visualize the animal spirit it holds.  Then he follows his instincts to bring that spirit out.  Each piece is unique. 

The wood comes from the branches of the copal tree.   Some wood can be found near Arrazola, but much of Oscar’s supply comes from the mountains near the rug-weaving village of Teotitlan del Valle, about 15 miles away.  Harvesters never take the whole tree, just the limbs.  That way, the tree can continue to generate new wood.  A tree must be at least 12 years old before harvesting can begin.

About 10 years ago, Oscar planted some copal trees on his own land.  The trees will be ready to harvest in another couple of years.  Oscar says that the first alebrije he carves from his own wood will be a very special piece, and he will not sell it (even to his Chiripa friends). - JM