Menu
A multicultural bilingual arts education program designed to share and celebrate the art and craft of Oaxacan woodcarving through direct contact with the artists.
A multicultural bilingual arts education program designed to share
and celebrate the art and craft of Oaxacan woodcarving through
direct contact with the artists.
Ventura Fabian (1938-2019) was one of Oaxaca’s most renown makers of the hand-carved, brightly painted wooden figures, now known as “alebrijes,” for which Oaxaca has become well-known.
One of the most original small group of carvers whose remarkable sculptures began the woodcarving revival in the 1980’s, Ventura’s work was sought out for its originality, humor and charm.
His figures present an unusual mix of elements from everyday life and the phantasmagoric creatures of his imagination.
Since 2003 Ventura and his son, Norberto, have come to the Boston area on an almost yearly basis to participate in
The Dancing Chickens of Ventura Fabian:
The Visiting Mexican Artists Program
Now the torch is being passed to Norberto, who is proud to carry on in the tradition of his father as a “campesino-artesano.” He will take over the carving duties and be joined by his wife, the talented painter, Blanca Estela Melchor Mendez.
Blanca grew up down the road from the Fabians in San Martín Tilcajete, the small rural woodcarving community outside the city of Oaxaca. She learned her craft as a child painting for her family, and later found inspiration for her designs from her indigenous Zapotec ancestry.
When she and Norberto married in 2004 she began to teach her distinctive, intricately detailed painting style to her new family.
