Día de Los Muertos (THE DAY OF THE DEAD)

This Day of the Dead Voodoo doll couple is made in honor of Catrin and Catrina, made popular by renowned author, journalist and political cartoonist Guadalupe Posada, (1852-1913). The names Catrin and Catrina mean "dapper," and they reflect the fashions of the times. Here, Catrin and Catrina are depicted as bride and groom calaveras, a popular image in Day of the Dead art.

These bride and groom calaveras measure approximately 9 to 10 inches not counting the 1 inch stand. They are not attached to the stand or each other, giving you greater flexibility for display. Their faces are handsculpted out of polymer clay with painted details. Catrina is dressed in vintage laces with a skull on a white flower at her center, and she has small gold and purple flowers on her veil. She is also holding a monarch butterfly for her groom. Catrin is wearing a grey tuxedo made out of faux suede, a ruffle shirt, and a red bow tie. He is wearing a hat made out of polymer clay and he is holding a bouquet of flowers for his bride. Both come signed for authenticity by the artist.

Available exclusively at The Mystic Voodoo.

Diego Rivera was a communist and world-famous Mexican painter, and husband of Frida Kahlo. Frida Kahlo was also a Mexican painter who has achieved great international popularity. Diego Rivera was a notorious ladies' man who had fathered at least two illegitimate children by two different women. In fact, he was still married when he met art student Frida Kahlo, whom he eventually married. Their mutual infidelities and his violent temper led to divorce in 1939, but they later re-married.

This Day of the Dead couple is my tribute to Frida and Diego, two great Mexican artists. They are created in my unique conjure art tradition, combining the tradition of the Aztec calavera with New Orleans Voodoo art. Frida measures approximately 8 inches including the feathers on her head. Her face is hand-sculpted out of polymer clay with painted details. She is wearing vintage lace and ribbons, and adorned with flowers, feathers, and rhinestones. She is self-standing and comes signed for authenticity.

Diego Rivera measures approximately 7 inches including his feathers. His face is hand-sculpted out of polymer clay with painted details, and he has a Day of the Dead bandana on his head. He is wearing a hand-beaded daisy chain necklace from which a cross hangs, and he has a mexican style blanket draped over his arm. He is self-standing and comes signed for authenticity.

Available exclusively at The Mystic Voodoo.

This Day of the Dead Voodoo doll is made in the spirit of this ancient Aztec tradition. He measures 14 inches tall by 7.5 inches wide. His face is hand-sculpted of polymer clay and painted with traditional imagery. His crown of flowers is real graveyard ephemera and his body is painted with the traditional el Corazon de la Muerte (heart of the Dead). His body is constructed in the traditional New Orleans Voodoo style of Spanish moss and sticks, wrapped with white cloth, and he wears a black cape. He stands on his own. His gold tooth is my whimsical DOD Voodoo doll trademark.

This Día de los Muertos Voodoo doll is dedicated to our indigenous people killed by war and lost in the process of colonization. May the flame of life smile upon the darkness of death!

Here is an example of another one of my Day of the Dead Voodoo dolls. He sports the purple tuxedo of the guedeh barons, and the decorative skull of ancient and contemporary Mesoamerica.

This Day of the Dead Voodoo doll couple is made in honor of Catrin and Catrina, made popular by renowned author, journalist and political cartoonist Guadalupe Posada, (1852-1913). He is credited for popularizing the Day of the Dead celebrations, especially through the creation of skeletal cartoons that capture the Mexican attitude towards death. The names Catrin and Catrina mean "dapper," and they reflect the fashions of the times. I have recreated the smart-looking couple as Voodoo dolls that exude comedic elegance.

The faces are made prior to making the bodies. When inspired, I will sculpt a number of skulls from polymer clay that are then baked in the oven. Their faces are further sculpted using a scalpel blade and sanded with sand paper. A gold tooth is placed in the mouth of the skull, which is my original signature. Their faces are pained with several coats of white acrylic paint, and then painted with colorful floral and traditional DOD motifs.Sometimes the faces are coated with a clear glitter topcoat for a further touch of whimsey. The dolls in the picture do not have the clear glitter top coat on their faces. Their faces are then glued to their bodies using a heavy hardware, household, and marine glue.

For the foundation of the bodies, I use the New Orleans Voodoo tradition of making dolls from sticks and Spanish moss, as opposed to paper mache as is typically used in Mexico. I use much less Spanish moss than when making other types of dolls, and sometimes I do not use Spanish moss at all. For example, Catrina was made without Spanish moss, while Catrin has a little Spanish moss. I wrap the bodies in white fabric and then dress them according to character, carefully sewing their outfits in colorful fabrics, lace, sequins, and flowers. I also use real graveyard ephemera as their bouquets and decoration. No, I don't go grave robbing for this! But I do visit cemetaries and I will pick up wind blown pieces of flowers and grave offerings that are in the road or the edge of the yard or otherwise away from graves. I clean these, and recycle them when creating my dolls. Lastly, the dolls are glued into place on a wooden doll stand so that they are self standing. The stands are also decorated with paint, flowers, and/or lace. The piece is then signed for authenticity somewhere on or below the stand.

Here is an example of a some decorative skulls characteristic of the Day of the Dead. When I create my Day of the Dead dolls, I typically start with painting a few skulls first.

The ancient Aztecs believed that when a person is born they get a nagual, an animal spirit companion who would be at their side throughout life as a soul partner. Animals are honored and revered because the Aztecs acknowledge the sacred interdependence between humankind and the animal world. Even today, the indigenous people are well aware of the fact that without our animal relatives we would cease to exist. Animal skeletons and skulls are a common element on the Day of the Dead altars and represent the sacred passing of a family pet or Animal Spirits. Our animal relatives are appeased with offerings as are our ancestors.

Día de los Muertos is a holiday rooted in the ancient past of Mesoamerica. I come by this artistic and spiritual tradition honestly through my earliest traceable ancestors, King Xicotencotl of Tlaxcalteca and Pedro de Alvarado, the Spanish conquistador.

Here is an example of one of my original Day of the Dead decorative altar skulls. It is a real raccoon skull. It is not paper maché or clay. It was found by my son who was exploring a century old barn that his uncle purchased in the Midwest. The skull was cleaned, bleached, and blessed, and then transformed into the beautiful work of art that you see in the picture. It is my Ofrenda a los Naguales (Offering to the Animal Spirits). I have hand painted it with acrylics and inks and strategically placed a few jewels to enhance the traditional design. It is in two pieces; the top of the skull sits on the lower jaw. It measures approximately 14 cm x 6.5 cm by anthropological standards.

Here are a few of the popular proverbs and sayings about the Day of the Dead:

Hay más tiempo que vida
There is more time than life.

Hierba mala nunca muere.
Bad weed never dies.

Se me subió el muerto.
The deceased climbed on me! Which means: "It really scared me!"

Ya ni en la paz de los sepulcros creo.
I don't even believe in the peace of the tombs anymore. "I don't trust anyone"

Te asustas del muerto y te cobijas con la mortaja.
You're afraid of the defunct but use his shroud to cover yourself! This saying is used when someone is criticizing someone else, but at the same time he takes advantage of him.

A mí la muerte me pela los dientes.
Death peels my teeth! Which means "Death can't do anything to me!"

Quien con la esperanza vive, alegre muere.
He who lives with hope dies happy.

Patzcuaro, MEXICO - An old Mexican pilgrim stayed all night long next to the tomb of her relatives in a Mexican cemetery during the Day of the Dead in Pastcuaro, Michoacan, Mexico. The Day of the Dead (dia de los muertos in Spanish) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico on November 2 and 3rd.

Although this story is from last year, the picture is a beautiful representation of this awesome celebration.

Read, more here: http://voodoo-news.blogspot.com/2007/10/day-of-dead-news.html