page_title: Adalberto Álvarez Marines
section_title: Career and Cartonería Museum
hierarchical_section_title: Adalberto Álvarez Marines / Career and Cartonería Museum
caption_attribution_description: English: Skeletal horse and rider made from cartonería by Adalberto Alvarez Marinez on display at the Museo de Arte Popular in Mexico City
context_page_description: Adalberto Alvarez Marines is a Mexican artist and artisan who specializes in creating sculptures and other works in hard paper mache, called cartonería in Mexican Spanish. As a child, Alvarez began drawing and writing, with some success in publishing illustrations and stories. In his mid twenties, he discovered cartoneria and shifted his artistic work to this medium, first on a personal basis while working at a factory until in 1994, when he dedicated himself to the craft full-time. Alvarez's work is distinct in Mexican cartoneria because of its often non-traditional themes and artistic sense, often classed as art, rather than handcraft. With the exception of alebrijes and skeletal figures, Alvarez avoids traditional forms in favor of exploring what can be done with the medium, focusing on sculpture, decorative items and furniture. He was named a "grand master" of Mexican folk art in 2014 and has exhibited his work in Mexico and the United States. However, he does not like to spend time in exhibition and promotion, establishing his own Cartoneria Museum at his home in Santa Catarina Ayotzingo, Chalco, State of Mexico
context_section_description: Alvarez began working with cartoneria in his mid twenties, not to become a commercial craftsman but as an artistic outlet. He is completely self-taught, with the exception of some classes he was invited to at the then National School of Arts in Xochimilco, Mexico City by a teacher who stated he needed to refine his technique.
  In 1992, he was hired by the Ciudadela Market to make alebrijes, but it was difficult for him because his creativity did not always coincide with the market and he was more interested in making an impact on people then on sales. So, the job lasted only three years. In 1994, he quit his factory job to devote himself to his art fill time. He has had some difficulty in selling pieces because of their paper base, but this has not deterred him.
  Alvarez teaches at the cultural center of Chalco and has been the main cartoneria instructor at the Fabrica de Arte y Oficios in Tlahuac since 2011. He also receives invitations to give classes and workshops at institutions such as the National Museum of Popular Culture.
  His first exhibition was at the Chalco Cultural Center, which he admits scared him to present his work to artists and intellectuals. He has since exhibited in various museums and other cultural institutions as both artist and artisan in the State of Mexico and Mexico City, and has exhibited in various Mexican universities.  His first and only major international exhibition of his work was in the United States, although he has sent pieces to Italy, France, Brazil and South Korea. In 2014, he exhibited at the Museo de Arte Popular for the first time as a "grand master."
  Alvarez is not a fan of museums or of spending time exhibiting or promoting his work as it takes time away from his workshop. He built an upper floor of his home to establish a Cartonería Museum, which contains over fifty pieces of his best work, along with some pieces by other artisans such as Sotero Lemus although in reality the entire property is filled with his work, which include furniture, vases and other decorative items.  He created the museum to have cartoneria exhibited on a permanent basis, and receives regular visits from students in local schools.
  He has a long-standing relationship with he Museo de Arte Popular, participating regularly with the Monumental Alebrije Parade, and working on major projects such as the "History Train" for Day of the Dead. In 2014, the museum named one a "grand master" of Mexican folk art.
caption: Skeletal horse and rider made from cartonería by Adalberto Alvarez Marinez on display at the Museo de Arte Popular in Mexico City
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