Unleashing Alebrijes
The launch of the annual Halloween gallery exhibition in the Bradbury-Smith Art Gallery has led many students to discover the world of animal hybrids and fantastical creatures through various forms of blacklight art. The inspiration for this year’s theme was alebrijes, which are native Mexican folk art of people’s spirit animal counterparts that are created using bold and vibrant colors. The exhibition was facilitated by students in the National Arts Honor Society (NAHS) who decided on this year’s theme, and the pieces were made by art students. To introduce this unit of art, Drawing and Painting, Advanced Placement (AP) Studio Art Drawing, AP Studio Art 2D teacher and adviser of NAHS, Jamie Nyman taught her students about how animals are represented visually and symbolically in Mexican, Native American and Aboriginal cultures.
Nyman asked her students to collaboratively design abnormal animals through a chance simulation consisting of different animal cards, dice and patterns. After this process was finished, the students developed their creatures and decorative designs with the animals they received. Finally, they filled their paintings with black light paint — an extremely transparent paint that makes the drawings glow in ultraviolet light —that resembled the bright appearance of alebrijes. President of NAHS and senior Nerissa Chin is proud of the space created to represent the beauty of these exotic animals and cultures.
“Everyone really wanted to make this exhibition memorable and immersive,” Chin said. “It was thrilling to create these animals and project them into the exhibition. We received many gasps of admiration from students and staff.”
In celebration of Halloween, NAHS chose to revolve the exhibition around alebrijes as a way to honor both Mexican culture and the living soul of humans. The gallery would demonstrate this theme by having everyone participate in making a hybrid animal that represented elements of their identity. Some people used the animals to signify their religion and culture, while others represented their personality with specific animal traits, such as a lion to represent bravery. President of NAHS and senior art student Sakura Nishikawa describes the significance of her drawing.
“I created a tall painting that represented a series of spirits flowing out of a woman’s neck,” Nishikawa said. “My work was inspired by a traditional themed scroll from Japanese culture. Since I am Japanese, I wanted my [art] to represent me and my native roots.”
NAHS is planning on hosting more galleries such as a sensory gallery that focuses on touch or smell and a jungle gallery that transforms the space into a safari with paper trees, vines and leaves. Nyman is extremely excited about what is to come for the gallery.
“The students have never failed to display their work with enthusiasm,” Nyman said. “I am beyond hopeful that the gallery will undergo many incredible concepts [that the artists] have to offer. [They] have a sense of pride and ownership that is [satisfying] to see.”
