Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Mexico Mexico City Museo de Arte Popular

Museo de Arte Popular

An airy Art Deco space devoted to the weird and wonderful folk art traditions of Mexico.

Mexico City, Mexico

Added By
Ike Allen
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The Museo de Arte Popular’s atrium   Alejandro Linares Garcia / GFDL
The Museo de Arte Popular’s atrium   Ike Allen / Atlas Obscura User
A devil figure in the Museo de Arte Popular   Ike Allen / Atlas Obscura User
The Museo de Arte Popular’s atrium   Ike Allen / Atlas Obscura User
A skeletal diorama in the Museo de Arte Popular   Ike Allen / Atlas Obscura User
The Museo de Arte Popular’s atrium   Ike Allen / Atlas Obscura User
A retablo in the Museo de Arte Popular   Ike Allen / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
  brittanyjones / Atlas Obscura User
  brittanyjones / Atlas Obscura User
  brittanyjones / Atlas Obscura User
Art déco stairs in the Museum.   linkogecko / Atlas Obscura User
The museum’s elevators and sunroof.   linkogecko / Atlas Obscura User
Trees of life   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
Daily life   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
Alebrijes hall   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
  brittanyjones / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
  pml33040 / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Mexico is a vastly multilingual and multiethnic country, where thousands of different indigenous folk traditions meld with Spanish colonial influences and modernism to create a distinctive culture that can be extremely difficult to categorize. As such it has one of the richest traditions of folk art (or as it is sometimes literally translated from Spanish, "popular art") in the world. 

The Museo de Arte Popular embraces these uniquely Mexican crafts, displaying some of the weirdest and most wonderful religious articles, dioramas, monsters, skeletons, piñatas, and pottery you are likely to see anywhere.

Octavio Paz famously wrote about the legendary treatment of death in Mexican culture: “The Mexican chases after death, mocks it, courts it, hugs it, and sleeps with it. He thinks of it as his favorite plaything and his most lasting love.” Whether or not this is broadly true, the Museo de Arte Popular demonstrates the cultural importance of death in the country, and especially the Día de Muertos, through folk art traditions around the country. Skulls and skeleton figures of all sizes, shapes, and materials abound in the collection, and the museum hosts special celebrations on the Day of the Dead. 

The brightly lit main atrium of the museum also features a wall decorated by a jumble of alebrijes, gigantic and fantastical animal figures like flies with dragon tails and multi-headed lions, all painted with neon colors. Once a year, the museum puts on a carnival-like parade of these sculptures. Alebrijes were created by Mexico City artisan Pedro Linares. They are also very popular in the southern state of Oaxaca, whose artisans still make some of the largest and most outlandish sculptures for the parade. If you are walking down Mexico City's monumental Paseo de la Reforma in October and encounter a parade of psychedelic papier-mâché creatures marching towards you, just know the Museo de Arte Popular is responsible. 

Related Tags

Museums And Collections Museums Outsider Art Art Deco Death Culture

Know Before You Go

If you want to take some colorful and vibrant Mexican handicrafts back home from your travels then check out the museum gift shop which is stocked with alebrijes, Día de Muertos skulls, pottery, and many more cultural treasures. Like most Mexico City museums, the MAP is closed on Mondays. Open all other days, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., except Wednesdays when closing time is extended to 9 p.m.

Atlas Obscura Adventures

Flavors of Oaxaca: Markets, Mezcal & Home-Cooked Meals

A Culinary and Cultural Journey Through Oaxaca.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

Ike Allen

Edited By

Monsieur Mictlan, linkogecko, brittanyjones, Mario Yair TS...

  • Monsieur Mictlan
  • linkogecko
  • brittanyjones
  • Mario Yair TS
  • pml33040

Published

July 11, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.mexican-folk-art-guide.com/alebrijes.html
Museo de Arte Popular
Calle Revillagigedo 11
Centro
Mexico City
Mexico
19.433918, -99.146055
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

'El Vochol'

Mexico City, Mexico

miles away

Plaza Santos Degollado

Mexico City, Mexico

miles away

Laboratorio de Arte Alameda

Mexico City, Mexico

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Mexico City

Mexico City

Mexico

Places 180
Stories 17

Nearby Places

'El Vochol'

Mexico City, Mexico

miles away

Plaza Santos Degollado

Mexico City, Mexico

miles away

Laboratorio de Arte Alameda

Mexico City, Mexico

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Mexico City

Mexico City

Mexico

Places 180
Stories 17

Related Stories and Lists

9 Places That Celebrate the Wonder of Masks

List

By Jonathan Carey

The Most Unusual Museums in Mexico City

List

By Ike Allen

Related Places

  • New Orleans, Louisiana

    The Great American Alligator Museum

    Come for the 14-foot-long taxidermy alligator. Stay for the mini costumed gators shooting pool.

  • The museum entrance.

    Mexico City, Mexico

    Museo Dolores Olmedo

    This extraordinary art museum is like a secret world on the edge of Mexico City.

  • Permanent collections.

    Amsterdam, Netherlands

    Museum Tot Zover

    This museum inside Amsterdam's largest cemetery explores how people deal with death.

  • Schloss Liebegg (Liebegg Castle)

    Gränichen, Switzerland

    Hexenmuseum Schweiz

    The excellent Swiss museum of witchcraft is led by a modern witch.

  • Reconstruction of a Vodou prayer room.

    Strasbourg, France

    Château Musée Vodou

    This fascinating museum in an old water tower holds the world's largest collection of Vodou artifacts from western and central Africa.

  • Guangfulin Relics Park.

    Shanghai, China

    Guangfulin Relics Park

    This theme park presents 5,000 years of Shanghai history and includes a "sunken" exhibition hall.

  • Congolese Kuyu sculptures.

    Birchington-on-Sea, England

    Powell-Cotton Ethnographic Collection

    A vast archive of cultural artifacts collected from numerous expeditions across Africa and Asia.

  • Engraving workshop at the museum

    Aguascalientes, Mexico

    Museo José Guadalupe Posada

    A museum dedicated to the famous Mexican illustrator's iconic calaveras.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.