Small Cedar Wood Tiger Alebrije Sculpture, "Brilliant Tiger"

This delightful small sculpture is hand carved from cedar wood by Mexico's Claudio Ojeda. He paints the tiger figurine by hand in the style of alebrijes, a colorful form of Mexican folk art. Small parts are separated for shipping to protect from breakage.

The folk art tradition of alebrijes dates back to the 1930's in Mexico City. A man named Pedro Linares was taken ill, and in his fevered dreams he saw a strange land populated with curious creatures--a donkey with wings, a rooster with bull's horns, and a lion with the head of a dog. The beasts all ran at him, shouting "alebrije! alebrije!". Upon his recovery, Linares began recreating the fantastical creatures he had seen in his dream. The art form gained popularity, and alebrijes are now made of wood as well as papier mache. The same style of painting can also be found on other (non-animal) items.