10.31.2013

CELEBRATING THE DAY OF THE DEAD

On the annual Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dea") celebration, it is believed that the souls of those who have died return to visit the living. It is a Mexican holiday that has been celebrated for centuries, tracing back to a similar ritual observed by the Aztecs. It is now celebrated in certain parts of the U.S. on November 1 and 2, and its underlying theme for this holiday is that it is a time of great celebration, not mourning...and it's not the Latino equivalent of Halloween.

The small, but wonderful Figge Art Museum featured a superb exhibition of more than 30 hand-made catrinas, skeleton figures made out of clay or paper mâché. Instead of honoring specific people, most of the catrinas honor themes.

Here are my favorites:












































All of the catrinas were made at the Casa Guanajuarto Quad Cities. You can read about their organization here.

To read more about the terrific Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa, click here.

All photos in this blog post were taken by me during my visit to the Figge Art Museum in October, 2013.

1 comment:

  1. After so many years it feels really amazing being able to see what we were able to succeed with this exibition. Thank you for the pictures posted, we are glad some one was able to capture them in the way you did.

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