Fantastic Alebrijes Parade to take over Mexico City

Alebrijes

are fantastic creatures created by Pedro Linares López , a scavenger born in 1906 in Mexico City . One day, Linares fell unconscious due to an illness and, during a long period of deep sleep, he claimed to have seen a series of mind-boggling creatures which he later tried to reproduce by painting small figures made of cardboard with all sorts of vibrant colors.

Alebrijes

are usually a blend of different animals : They may have a lion’s head and the body of a crocodile, or the body of a fish with dragon wings, to name a few. Though they were originally made of cardboard, artisans in Oaxaca make alebrijes carved out of copal wood , which are then painted with bright colors and all sorts of tiny patterns and details on their bodies.

In the vein of this tradition, the 13th edition of the Mexico City Alebrije Parade , organized by the Mexico Museum of Popular Art , will feature monumental papier-mâché sculptures created by artisans, artist collectives, and craft workshops.

The parade will take place next Saturday, October 19 . At 12:00 pm , alebrijes of all shapes and colors will march from Mexico City’s main square , locally known as Zócalo , to continue through 5 de Mayo, Juárez , and Paseo de la Reforma avenues, to end in the Angel of Independence monument.

Once the parade ends, the monumental alebrijes will remain in Paseo de la Reforma from Saturday, October 19 to Sunday, November 17 at 20:00 pm.

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