Higareda Workshop

History

The Higareda workshop was founded by brothers Daniel, Guillermo, and Eduardo around 1970 in Guadalajara, Mexico. They started out by providing trade-ins, accepting carved wooden figures in exchange for cast aluminum replicas that could better handle the hardships of ride use.

The workshop began producing its own original figures sometime in the 1980s, though these figures were primarily decorative and very few were ever ride-used. Many of these figures were brought to the United States and sold to various collectors, dealers, and antique shops. These figures were being imported up until the early 2000s.

Daniel acted as the salesman, Guillermo as the business manager, and Eduardo as a carver and artist. The brothers had up to sixteen employees at one time, including sons and nephews.

The Higareda brothers are well-known for their involvement with the 'Mexican' Muller carousel--a D.C. Muller & Bro carousel that operated for many years in Mexico before the mechanism was destroyed by Hurricane Gilbert. The brother's purchased the surviving figures from the former owner and brought them to the United States to sell at auction. The initial auction in 1994 was not very successful, and the 'Mexican' Muller figures turned up at various auctions for several years after. The Higaredas also produced carved wooden replicas of some of these figures, in addition to aluminum and bronze castings.

Click hear to read about the 'Mexican' Muller carousel.

From left to right: Guillermo, Adriana, and Eduardo Higareda at the 'Mexican' Muller auction (Photo: The Carousel News & Trader, November 1994).

Daniel Higareda (Photo: Noreene & Mike Sweeney).

Identification

The Higaredas produced both jumping and standing horses, as well as a variety of menagerie figures--including rare greyhound dogs, hogs, giraffes, goats, and zebras with leopard pelt blankets. The figures are usually blocky, with thick, muscular legs, long necks, and large heads. The horses often have their necks turned at unnatural, dramatic angles. All original Higareda carvings are child-sized.

Like other Mexican carousel figures, Higareda carvings have the pole hole through the front of the saddle, unlike American figures where the hole goes between the saddle and neck. The eyes are typically glass or plastic teddy bear eyes, with simple, shallow carving for the sockets and brows. Manes, tails, and tassels are deeply carved, usually in thick, parallel lines. The carvings on the horse's tails typically do not start until a few inches away from the body.

Higareda figures can have a variety of trappings, including tassels, flowers, collars, and animal pelts. The saddles, blankets, and breast bands are almost always painted with gold-colored trim. The paint was also intentionally worn away using a sander to create an antiqued look, and some were stained to imitate yellow or orange patina.

Higareda figures often have numbers carved or stamped onto their bellies. These numbers are often very hard to spot and read due to the sanding and paint. The meaning of the numbers is unknown, but they may relate to specific carving patterns or the date of manufacture.

A Higareda horse--note the position of the pole, thickly muscled legs, and long, curved neck. Part of the author's collection (Photo: Elizabeth Salenius).