Armando Jimenez: Rooster Woodcarving

Armando Jimenez carves in the tradition of his grandfather, Don Manuel Jiménez Ramírez, founder of the Oaxacan alebrije movement, and this rooster sits squarely within that classic style. The bird is caught off balance on purpose, weight forward, comb thrown back, tail sweeping high into a curve that pulls the whole composition upward and to one side. Nothing about the pose sits still. Across cultures the rooster has long stood for the turn from dark to light, the animal that announces the day before anyone else is awake, and a bird this animated suits that restless reputation. The tail carries the same confidence found throughout Don Manuel's lineage, bold, radiating bands of color fanned out and balanced against a body kept comparatively quiet and dotted, the kind of contrast this family's work is known for. It is a rooster captured at the one moment before it either crows or walks away. Origin: Oaxaca Dimensions: 8''Tall 8''Long 4.5''Wide