11 January, 2024
In partnership with WEP 2024's Digital Adventure - ride to the future, Community Life presents this fantastic opportunity for cultural and artistic enrichment.
Hugo Cruz Jiménez, an artist and ex-postdoctoral fellow at KAUST from Mexico and his artist friend Angélico Jiménez Carrillo will be here to enlighten us about Alebrijes, Tonas and Nahuales, a traditional Mexican art next week. They are carved out of wood, depicting magical and mystical creatures that combine multiple animals in one, featuring a variety of colors and patterns.
Alebrijes are a significant aspect of Mexican culture and identity. They were featured in the animated movie "COCO" by Disney PIXAR, which showcases the Mexican tradition of "The Day of the Dead."
The event will include a talk, exhibitions, a workshop, and a movie screening.
Hugo and Angélico will also give a talk as part of WEP 2024, providing a comprehensive overview of Alebrijes, Tonas, and Nahuales. They will explain their origins, how they are created, and their significance in Mexican culture. Angélico will also walk us through the entire process of creating these beautiful pieces, from wood carving to the final painted product. They will emphasize the importance of sustainability and community collaboration towards the end of their talk.
The exhibitions will consist of several pieces of Alebrijes in varied sizes, patterns, colors and resolutions. A selection of the art pieces will be available for sale.
Exhibition 1
In this two-day, hands-on workshop, all participants will learn how to paint Alebrijes. The workshop will cover how to mix the paints, extract colors from natural ingredients, and draw patterns and designs. Angélico and Hugo will be there to guide everyone through all the steps of the process.
Each participant will be given a carved Alebrijes to work with made of Copal, a Mexican tree of softwood.
In Disney Pixar's vibrant tale of family, fun and adventure, an aspiring young musician named Miguel (voice of Anthony Gonzalez) embarks on an extraordinary journey to the magical land of his ancestors. There, the charming trickster Héctor (voice of Gael García Bernal) becomes an unexpected friend who helps Miguel uncover the mysteries behind his family's stories and traditions. This is a wonderful, family-friendly movie. Bring your kids and enjoy the fun.
Hugo Cruz Jiménez is a Mexican Geophysicist and Seismologist with a passion in Agriculture and Drawing of Portraits. He was a postdoctoral fellow at KAUST and participated in the “Artists of KAUST” exhibitions in 2011-2014 in which he showed “King Abdullah” with the 2 Holy Mosques on his glasses, which was enjoyed by the community.
Angélico Jiménez Carrillo is a Mexican artisan. He is from the community of San Antonio Arrazola, Oaxaca. He uses the Zapotec ritual calendar and his drawings represent the pre-Hispanic Zapotec iconography. In his career, he has won several awards in contests about Mexican Popular Art. He has participated in exhibitions in Mexico, USA and in The Vatican.
