Tuesday, September 9, 2014

The 3 Calaveras

I created these 3 Calaveras as a series to show the evolution of the "Calavera" within the Mexican Tradition.


This calavera I call, "First Skull".  A hallmark of "modern" humans was the actual burial and ceremonies that followed the death of a loved one.  The body would be decorated and placed in a shallow grave, to be unearthed later and displayed as an honored Ancestor.




The second skull, "Aztec Warrior" .  This calavera shows all of the magical, mystical warrior marking on this skull face.  The Aztec civilization took the power of life/death to another level.


The final skull is the modern Sugar Calavera with bright colors and common motifs.  The modern era has turned the Calavera into more a caricature of death, rather than the powerful and revered original skulls of the Ancestors.