Laurel Alanis is a contemporary wood sculptor based in San José del Cabo, Baja California Sur, Mexico. Working exclusively by hand, he carves original sculptures from native and regional hardwoods including Rosa Morada, Parota, Cedar, Eucalyptus, and Encino. His work explores the intersection of sacred geometry, natural texture, and the quiet dialogue between human intention and material intelligence.

Born in Mexico, Laurel spent twenty-five years living in Spain, where he immersed himself in the traditions of European painting, drawing inspiration from Renaissance, Surrealist, and Cubist artists. This prolonged exposure to the art and visual language of the Old World instilled in him a deep sense of discipline regarding composition, light, and surface.

Upon returning to Baja California Sur, Alanis set aside the canvas entirely. Drawn to the eroded rocks, coral formations, and desert textures of his adopted landscape, he picked up wood carving tools for the first time, with no prior experience in the medium. Within months, his training as a painter translated into a sculptural practice marked by unusual sensitivity to grain, depth, and spatial rhythm. The transition was instinctive and complete.

His ongoing series, Dialogues with Nature, comprises hand-carved wall sculptures and freestanding pieces that reference organic patterns found in Baja’s desert-ocean terrain. Each work takes fifteen to thirty-five hours of meditative carving. No molds. No repetition. Every piece is singular.

Laurel exhibits with Bazarte Los Cabos and has shown at Artphoria Design and Casa Paulina Concept House in San José del Cabo’s Gallery District. His work is held in private collections across Baja California and the American Southwest.

He works from the front patio of his home in a small neighborhood in San José del Cabo. A studio defined not by white walls, but by the sound of tools shaping wood and the smell of varnish sealing each finished piece into place.