Large Dog Alebrije by Arsenio Morales

Arsenio Morales (Mexican, Oaxaca, active XX-XXI century). Dog alebrije. Painted wooden sculpture, n.d. Signed on underside of body. A lean, alert canine caught mid-crouch, its elongated body and impossibly long tail sweeping upward in a single sinuous gesture. Carved from copal wood and hand-painted in deep aubergine, the surface teems with fine white stippling, turquoise ovals, and confetti-like dots of blue, yellow, and red, the dense micro-patterning characteristic of Oaxacan alebrije decoration. Scarlet claws and a bared, tooth-lined muzzle lend the creature a mischievous ferocity, while ringed eyes and incised whiskers animate the narrow head. These fantastical beasts, hand-carved and signed by the artist on the underside, belong to a living Oaxacan folk-art tradition prized for its exuberant color and painstaking brushwork. A prestige decorative sculpture, made to be seen and celebrated rather than used. Alebrijes originated in 1930s Mexico City with papier-mache maker Pedro Linares, who dreamed of brightly colored composite creatures and gave them the invented name "alebrijes." The form migrated to the Zapotec villages around Oaxaca, notably San Martin Tilcajete and Arrazola, where woodcarvers adapted it to locally abundant copal wood, developing the intensely patterned painting style seen here. Each piece is carved from a single block or joined sections, sanded, and finished with acrylic dot-and-line ornament applied freehand, a technique that can take weeks to complete. Item # 203670

Estimate:$250

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