Erwin List Sanchez is a Mexican-born artist who resides between Cozumel & Greenport, New York. He creates life-size animal sculptures inspired by nature and the wastelands. Erwin List Sanchez forges and welds railroad spikes and scrap metal to create his sculptures, a material he has been working with since 1996. In recent years, he has also incorporated natural materials found on land and underwater into his sculptures, such as rocks, driftwood, corals, and shells. His very first figurative sculpture with railroad spikes was that of a porcupine. He has also created works for conservation projects, such as the Janos Biosphere Reserve in Northern Mexico.
In parallel, Erwin delves into cartonería, the vibrant tradition of Mexican papercraft. Through this medium, he explores how culture travels and adapts outside of Mexico, transforming and enriching itself in new environments. His fantastical cartonería animals, born from the intersection of his Mexican heritage and his current surroundings, reflect his perceived environment. These hybrid creatures sculpt the familiar forms of Mexican folklore with new realities, creating a bestiary that is both deeply rooted and continuously reinvented.
I transform discarded metal and found objects into life-size animal sculptures, celebrating the harsh beauty of industrial landscapes. My work explores the tension between relentless progress and the fragility of the natural world.
Railroad spikes, symbols of advancement, are my primary material. By heating, forging, and welding them, I mirror how progress often exploits our environment. My shift from scavenging spikes along desolate tracks to purchasing them online highlights the ease and disconnect of modern consumption.
My sculptures stand as stark reminders of what we risk losing. Yet, they embody a defiant hope that we can forge a more sustainable future—one where progress and respect for the natural world coexist.
My work explores the vibrant tradition of Mexican cartonería within the context of my experience living outside of Mexico. I am fascinated by how culture travels and adapts, transforming and enriching itself in new environments. My creations are primarily inspired by the natural world and its creatures. These fantastical animals, born from the intersection of my Mexican heritage and my present surroundings, become a reflection of my perceived environment. They embody the interconnectedness of our imaginations, demonstrating how we carry our cultural roots with us, allowing them to blossom and evolve in unexpected ways. Through cartonería, I sculpt the hybrid creatures of my imagination, where the familiar forms of Mexican folklore intertwine with the new realities of my present, creating a bestiary that is both rooted and reinvented.
I am an artist who creates life-size animal sculptures from discarded railroad spikes and found objects. My work is inspired by the harsh beauty of the wasteland, and it is a warning about the dangers of unchecked progress.
I believe that our current way of life is unsustainable, and that we are headed for a future where nature has been destroyed and animals have gone extinct. My sculptures are a reminder of what we stand to lose if we do not change our ways.
I make my sculptures by painstaking hand, heating and forging over 1,000 railroad spikes which are slowly welded together from the ground up. In my work the railroad spikes symbolize progress, and the way I make my sculptures is a metaphor for the way that progress has been achieved at the expense of nature.
In the past, I would savage the spikes by walking for miles along desolated railroad tracks. But now, I just click a button and buy them on Amazon. This is a reflection of how easy it is to get what we want in the modern world, even if it means destroying the environment in the process.
I am a sculptor of the wasteland, but I am also a hopeful artist. I believe that it is not too late to build a better future.
Education
1987-92 UAEM, Estado de México.
1992-95 Modeling and Mold Making with Professor Maria Santillan, Metépec, Mexico.
1996-97 Sculpting metal with Professor Fernando Cano, Toluca, México.
2007-11 Metal Fabrication at Art Students League Of New York.
Professional Experience
2022- Present Part-time Sculptor Instructor at CAST, Southold, NY.
2021- 2022 Part-time Sculptor Instructor at Project MOST, East Hampton, NY.
1997 - Present Freelance Artist.
Group Exhibitions
2025 Art residency at Caumsett State Historic Park Preserve.
2024 North Fork Art Center, Greenport, NY.
2024 Sculpture @ Sylvester Manor, Shelter Island NY.
2024 Floyd Memorial Library, Greenport, NY.
2023 Culture LAB LIC. Sculpture Garden, Long Island City, Queens, NY.
2023 Montauk Artist Association, NY.
2023 LIC-A Long Island City Artist, NY.
2022 South Hampton Cultural Center, NY.
2010 Crest Hardware & Urban Garden Center, Brooklyn, NY.
2010 Crest Hardware & Urban Garden Center, Brooklyn, NY.
2009 Brooklyn Artist Coalition, Brooklyn, NY.
2008 Art Student League Of New York, NY.
1998 Centro Cultural Cancun, Qroo, Mexico.
1997 Muséo De La Isla Cozumel, Qroo Mexico.
1996 Centro Cultural Méxiquese, Toluca, Edo Mex.
Hi there, if you wish to contact me or wish to visit my studio, please use the form below or: erwinlistsanchez@gmail.com 212-731-2387
