Houston is about to get seven enormous visitors from the realm of Mexican magical realism. Beginning September 15, a free outdoor exhibition at Discovery Green will bring brightly painted guardian animals to downtown, where they will remain on view through October 11.
Discovery Green’s official listing schedules the presentation as a signature experience at the 12-acre park. It is the kind of public art installation that turns a routine downtown stroll into a decidedly more colorful detour.
Seven 20-foot creatures will tower over downtown
The sculptures are built to be impossible to miss: CultureMap Houston reports that all seven stand 20 feet tall and depict powerful animal guardian spirits from Mesoamerican folklore. Each is an enlarged reproduction of an original work by a celebrated Oaxacan artist.
The exhibition’s cultural vocabulary is rooted in Oaxaca’s Zapotec traditions. According to the project organizers, tonas are animal souls believed to protect a person, while nahuales are beings with the power to shift into animal form; the project also traces the alebrije tradition to Mexico City artist Pedro Linares.
Houston gets more than a giant outdoor art display
Discovery Green’s event calendar also lists hands-on programming connected to the exhibition, including a September 19 paper-mâché mask workshop and a September 26 alebrijes workshop. The activities offer visitors a chance to engage with the craft traditions behind the towering sculptures rather than simply admire them from a safe, very tiny distance.
Admission to the exhibition is free, and CultureMap Houston notes that the installation is intended to highlight cultural connections between Houston and Mexico across the Gulf. Event details remain subject to weather and other changes, so visitors should check with Discovery Green before making the trip.
