Rodolfo Villena Hernández (born 1968) is a Mexican artisan who specializes in

cartonería Cartonería or papier-mâché sculptures are a Mexican handcrafts and folk art, traditional handcraft in Mexico. The papier-mâché works are also called "carton piedra" (rock cardboard) for the rigidness of the final product. These sculptures tod ...

, a type of hard

papier-mâché file:JacmelMardiGras.jpg, upright=1.3, Mardi Gras papier-mâché masks, Haiti Papier-mâché ( , , - the French term "mâché" here means "crushed and ground") is a versatile craft technique with roots in ancient China, in which waste paper is s ...

used to sculpt

piñata A piñata (, ) is a container, often made of papier-mâché, pottery, or cloth, that is decorated, filled with candy, and then broken as part of a celebration. Piñatas are commonly associated with Mexico. The idea of breaking a container fill ...

s, holiday decorations, Judas figures as well as the building of monumental works. His works have been exhibited in

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

and

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. He has also been involved in theater. His work has been recognized with various awards over his career.

Earky life and education

Villena Hernández was born in

to parents who taught him to respect Mexican traditions and encouraged his interest in them. He began creating his own

Day of the Dead The Day of the Dead () is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. The multi-day holiday involves family and friends gathering to pa ...

altars when he was age ten in the family garage. He studied history at the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

, then moved to the city of Puebla when he was age twenty three, where he still lives.

Cartonería career

He began his artisan career in 1990, after taking classes in cartonería, with a break for a year in 1996 when he went to New York to earn money selling chicharrones. Since then, he has been dedicated to cartonería full-time. His workshop is just outside the city of Puebla on the old highway linking this city to that of

Tlaxcala Tlaxcala, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tlaxcala, is one of the 32 federal entities that comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Tlaxcala, 60 municipalities and t ...

, an old industrial corridor. The exterior is non-descript, distinguished only by his name on the door. Inside, there are two rooms filled with creations in various stages of completion as well as walls covered in various recognitions. Villena Hernández makes most of the traditional cartonería objects such as piñatas,

Lupita dolls Lupita dolls, also known as cartonería dolls, are toys made from a very hard kind of papier-mâché which has its origins about 200 years ago in central Mexico. They were originally created as a substitute for the far more expensive porcelain doll ...

, Judas figures, but he has become known for monumental works commissioned by government and cultural institutions in Puebla and Mexico City related to

Holy Week Holy Week () commemorates the seven days leading up to Easter. It begins with the commemoration of Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, marks the betrayal of Jesus on Spy Wednesday (Holy Wednes ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

, Corpus Christi and the Day of the Dead. Of these, his altars related to the Day of the Dead are of particular note, especially the skeletal figures that adorn them. He has created altars in honor of

Juan de Palafox y Mendoza Juan de Palafox y Mendoza (26 June 1600 – 1 October 1659) was a Spanish politician, administrator, and Catholic clergyman in 17th century Spain and a viceroy of Mexico. Palafox was the Bishop of Puebla (1640−1655), and the interim Archb ...

(2009) for the Puebla city hall, the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution () was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from 20 November 1910 to 1 December 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It saw the destruction of the Federal Army, its ...

for the Complejo Cultural Universitaria of the

Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla The Meritorious Autonomous University of Puebla () (BUAP) is the oldest and largest university in Puebla, Mexico. Founded on 15 April 1578 as Colegio del Espíritu Santo, the school was sponsored by the Society of Jesus during most of the Spanis ...

(2010), the China Poblana with various students for the Puebla city hall (2012) and one for

José Guadalupe Posada José Guadalupe Posada Aguilar (2 February 1852 – 20 January 1913) was a Mexican political printmaker who used relief printing to produce popular illustrations. His work has influenced numerous Latin American artists and cartoonists becaus ...

for the

National Museum of Mexican Art The National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA) is a museum featuring Mexico, Mexican and Chicano art and culture. It is located in Harrison Park in the Lower West Side, Chicago, Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, Chicago, Illinois. The museum ...

in Chicago (2013) . The artisan represents death as something happy, fun and irreverent, with the skeletal figures in movement. His works also show influence from José Guadalupe Posada in their sense of irony. His work has been exhibited in various locations in Mexico as well as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and Madrid, which included an invitation to the

for a month. His work can be found in public and private collections including that of Richard Harris's collection of death memorabilia and at the Casa de Venados in

Mérida, Yucatán Mérida (, ) is the capital of the List of states of Mexico, Mexican state of Yucatán, and the largest city in southeastern Mexico. The city is also the seat of the Mérida Municipality, eponymous municipality. It is located slightly inland fro ...

. However, he says that his work is better appreciated outside of Mexico, with few in the country willing to pay what the creations are worth. He also finds it difficult to get government and non-governmental support to exhibit outside the country. To supplement his income from sales, he also gives classes and rents pieces for showings. Villena Hernández’s cartonería work has won awards and recognitions in Puebla, other parts of Mexico and the United States. In 2001, he won first place at the Premio de Arte Popular of

FONART The Fondo Nacional para el Fomento de las Artesanías or National Fund for the Development of Arts and Crafts (best known as FONART) is a dependence of the Secretariat of Social Development (SEDESOL). It was established in 1974 to promote and prote ...

, for a 3.4-meter train boarded by skeletal figures depicting the

, which took six months and seven kilos of paper to make. He was named one of the 475 distinguished citizens of the state of Puebla. In 2013, he was named a "master of popular art" (''maestro de arte popular'') by the

Museo de Arte Popular The Museo de Arte Popular (Museum of Folk Art) is a museum in Mexico City, Mexico, that promotes and preserves part of the Mexican handcrafts and folk art. Located in the historic center of Mexico City in an old fire house, the museum has a coll ...

in Mexico City. He has also been interviewed for radio, television and newspapers for his work related to culture.

Theatrical career

In addition to his cartonería, Villena Hernández has also been involved with the theatre, directing and producing plays with his own company (Compañia Teatral de Rodolfo Villena) . He also wrote and produced a play, ''La Gatita del Principal'', as a tribute to María Conesa in 1994.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Villena Hernandez, Rodolfo Date of birth missing (living people) 1968 births Living people 20th-century Mexican dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Mexican male artists 20th-century Mexican male writers 21st-century dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Mexican male artists 21st-century Mexican male writers Artists from Mexico City Artists from Puebla Mexican male dramatists and playwrights Mexican theatre directors Mexican theatre managers and producers National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni Organization founders Paper artists Papier-mâché People from Puebla (city) Writers from Mexico City Writers from Puebla