page_title: Handcrafts and folk art in Oaxaca
section_title: Arrazola and Tilcajete
hierarchical_section_title: Handcrafts and folk art in Oaxaca / Towns of the Central Valleys / Arrazola and Tilcajete
caption_attribution_description: English: Manuel Jimenez with one of his creations in Arrazola, Oaxaca
context_page_description: Oaxaca handcrafts and folk art is one of Mexico's important regional traditions of its kind, distinguished by both its overall quality and variety. Producing goods for trade has been an important economic activity in the state, especially in the Central Valleys region since the pre-Hispanic era which the area laid on the trade route between central Mexico and Central America. In the colonial period, the Spanish introduced new raw materials, new techniques and products but the rise of industrially produced products lowered the demand for most handcrafts by the early 20th century. The introduction of highways in the middle part of the century brought tourism to the region and with it a new market for traditional handcrafts. Today, the state boasts the largest number of working artisans in Mexico, producing a wide range of products that continue to grow and evolve to meet changing tastes in the market.
  Oaxacan handcrafts are also highly specialized by community.
context_section_description: Today, wood in Oaxaca is worked into masks and furniture; there is no local market for wood carving, with all production done for sales to tourists and collectors. By far the most popular wood carving is the making of fantastic animal figures called alebrijes. These are mostly made in the towns of San Antonio Arrazola and San Martin Tilcajete, with some notable work done in La Unión Tejalapan .
  Many buyers of alebrijes assume the works have a longer history in Mexico than they do. They were created in the 20th century, with the concept conceived by Mexico City cartonería maker Pedro Linares, who Oaxaca lore states emigrated from Arrazola to the capital.
  The Oaxaca version of alebrijes differ not only by being smaller and carved from wood, but the figures generally are more recognizable as a single animal such as lions, jaguars, iguanas, dragons, dogs, snakes, rather than an amalgam of various animal parts. The reason for this is that there is a long Zapotec tradition of the carving of wooden figures. The first to develop Oaxaca alebrijes was Manuel Jiménez Ramírez of Arrazola, who created them for over thirty years before his death, using soft copal wood which is still preferred. He then painted them in bright colors and with intricate designs. He was followed by Santos Pinos and then the craft spread to others in the town. It was similar in San Martín Tilcajete, where a few pioneering families started the trend there. The two towns originally began selling to tourists but eventually the pieces became collectors’ items that are now sold in shops and galleries in the US and other countries.
caption: Manuel Jimenez with alebrije
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