Dia de los Muertos: Tribute and Tradition
Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum
1852 W. 19th St., Chicago
Sept. 25 - Nov. 5, 2004
By Marc Goldin
Throughout the world and across cultures, there is a kind of universal sense of the autumn period as a time to reflect on and celebrate death both literally and figuratively. Having origins in ancient cultures, this period of time, with the end of various life sustaining crops and plants, and the weather changes, seems to organically lend itself to the concept of death and the different ways of embracing it. The Celtic pagan culture celebrated Samhain and later, All Hallows Eve, the medieval Catholic world, its All Saints Day and All Souls Day. There was crossover and blurring of custom as Catholic cultures moved into and among non-Catholic ones. One area of the world in particular that reflects this blending is in Mexico, where each November 1st and 2nd, El Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is celebrated. It is a unique ritual that is part Catholic dogma and part ancient Aztec custom. When the Spanish Conquistadores came in the 15th century, they instituted Catholic practices, one of which was a remembrance of the dead in All Saints Day and All Souls Day. The ancient indigenous peoples of Mexico already believed that the souls of the dead return each year to visit with their living relatives, so the Day of the Dead holiday evolved into what it is today.
Nov.1st, All Saints Day is observed to remember the deceased infants and children, angelitos (little angels), with toys and colorful balloons adorning their graves. Nov. 2nd, All Souls Day is when the adult spirits return and are honored with ofrendas (offerings) placed on an altar, that consist of the dead's favorite food and drink, as well as ornamental and personal belongings. There are certain traditional aspects of the ofrenda; generally a three-tiered altar covered in colored tissue paper with candles, sugar skulls, a special bread and a photo of the deceased. Also placed on and around the altar are some of the dead's personal effects and items that he or she may have favored - a brand of cigarette or liquor, or a favorite record, for example. There is a very distinct Mexican attitude towards death, respectful but also playful and mocking, that is reflected in Day of the Dead art and paraphernalia, specifically in the form of skeleton figures in paintings or in sculpture, as papier-mache figures. In all of these, the figure(s) are doing something ordinary, like riding a bicycle, playing a musical instrument, or even driving a car. Sometimes, the figures are a bride and groom. The idea is that death is always with us and not to be feared.
Every year, in Chicago, The Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum holds a Day of the Dead exhibit that features the best Mexican and Mexican-American art dealing with this theme. Some of this year's offerings:
This first piece that I saw was unnamed. Created by the students of Cristo Rey High School, it was dedicated to, 'The More than 450 Women of Ciudad Juarez' who have disappeared and gone missing. A particularly poignant piece, it is an ofrenda in the form of an old desk with drawers pulled open, spools of thread in them and fabric spilling out. At the base, is a sand covering with several lipstick cases and other makeup accessories strewn about. Every year, dozens of young women workers in the sweatshops and factories there end up missing and presumably murdered, their fates never to be known.
La Catrina, or 'The Fancy Lady', greeted me next as a big mixed media installation. La Catrina is a well-known character and cultural icon, developed by Jose Guadalupe Posada in 1913, and appears throughout Mexican art, most notably in Diego Rivera's mural, 'Dream of a Sunday Afternoon at the Alameda' (1948). She is a parody of upper class women during the rule of Porfirio Diaz and one can see the droll humor in her wide-brimmed hat and flowing garments. She is holding a mirror in her left hand, which makes the obvious statement when the viewer approaches. This piece was done by a small group of students from the University of Mexico in Mexico City.
This piece, Altar de los Muertos en Alacena Roja (Altar of the Dead in Red Cupboard) is by Elena Climent, oil on canvas, 2002. It is especially vibrant, depicting a little vignette on each level.
The first piece, 'Xico', by Alvaro Brizuela (2004) is a traditional ofrenda from the Mexican state of Veracruz. It contains several of the items that one would see on a more traditional ofrenda.
The second piece, 'Artesano de Calaveras de Azucar' (Sugar Skull Maker) is also traditional; a papier-mache sculpture by Paula Linares (1992) of the famed Linares family. The Linares family has been making various Day of the Dead figures and other art for at least a hundred years in Mexico. Sugar skulls are essential in any Day of the Dead piece or celebration. Also, one can see the calavera (skeleton or skull) at work in an ordinary fashion.
These last two paintings, 'Mescia de Los Angeles'(L.A. Mix: Charles 'Chaz' Bojorquez, 1998) and 'El Vato Muerto' (Dead Dude: Ricardo Duffy, 1992) are perfect examples of the new directions that younger, more streetwise Mexican artists are following in Day of the Dead art. One can see all sorts of urban symbols in the halo surrounding the skull in 'L.A. Mix', and the gangbanger in 'Dead Dude' is a chilling but droll play on Day of the Dead themes.
There were many more outstanding pieces in this exhibit and it is always an emotional visit, too. In an odd way, it's also life affirming, coming face to face with an examination of death in every piece of art. I always leave these exhibits feeling inspired and more alive than ever.