Pedro Linares was born today, June 29, in 1906, in Mexico City. He was the creator of the paper mache figures called alebrijes, devised after he fell ill at age 30. He saw the fantastical creatures while in a dreamlike state. When he awoke he wanted his family so see them also so he constructed the creatures from paper and then painted them with bright colors. The first ones were a donkey with butterfly wings, a lion with an eagle head and rooster with bull horns. They were all shouting Alebrijes, Alebrijes! hence their name. Other combinations evolved as he began making them. Later he began creating the figurines for artists at the Academia de San Carlos such as Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera.
In 1988, Pedro Linares was awarded the highest honor from the Mexican government, the National Arts and Science Award in the Popular and Traditional Arts category.
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