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As you've been driving down Avenida Campeche on your way to El Mirador beach, you may have noticed a collection of beautiful ironwood carvings under a huge willow tree in a yard to your left. They are the work of Florencio Arellanes, a master carver who has been doing this kind of work for 17 years.
Florencio started his career as an apprentice in Kino Bay. There he worked at sanding, cleaning, and odd jobs connected with the business. His boss let him stay after hours to practice his own carving skills.
Slowly Florencio made one item after another, each one a little better than the last. Then one day a customer came in and asked his employer if he would sell him a collection of 200 carvings. The boss didn't have that many on hand, but he asked Florencio if he would sell some of his. Florencio had about 40, which he didn't think were very good, but the customer wanted them and was willing to pay, so Florencio sold them.
He came to Puerto Peñasco in 1981 and has lived here ever since. Several years ago, he decided that he needed a summer business, since the tourist trade is slow during that time. A friend helped him buy 4 washers and a dryer to start a laundromat. His friend's wife was Karen, so he named the laundromat after her. It has since been expanded and is doing very good business.
Florencio and his wife, Alma, have 4 children, Florencio, 16; Jorge, 15; Alma, 13, and Monica, 9.
Florencio Jr.'s talents are in the business area. He helps his mother in the laundry. Jorge is artistic with wood, like his father. Florencio showed us a sample of his work, a carved heart with someone's name on it, decorated with ruffles. It was a present for a quinceañera.
Florencio gets his wood out in the desert, about 150 miles away. He starts carving the rough item, using a circular saw. Then he uses a router, and a smaller router to refine the design. He sands the carvings, fills in the cracks with glue, and polishes them with brown shoe polish. His lowest priced items are $5 - $10, and he has some that he sells for as much as $2500. We saw an example of one such in progress. It was a huge ram with curved horns. Another carving we found intriguing was three dolphins chasing each other's tails in a circle. Some designs Florencio comes up with himself, but many come from others or from pictures. He can make just about anything if customers give him an idea of what they want.
If you're in the market for something original or just want to see an artist at work, stop in at Florencio's Place.
