Orange County Register

“El Casamiento” by Ladislao Loera.

As you may or may not know, Sunday was the Day of the Dead — or El Día de los Muertos — and the Mexican/Latin American tradition continues today, Nov. 2.

The two-day celebration corresponds with the Catholic holidays of All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1 and All Souls’ Day on Nov. 2. While the dearly departed are recognized on both days, many celebrants focus on deceased children on Nov. 1 and deceased adults on Nov. 2.

You can read a story about Day of the Dead celebrations in Orange County here.

As with other culturally-specific celebrations, a good deal of art comes out of the Day of the Dead. There are variously and colorfully decorated skeletons,  intricate altars to departed loved ones, colorful masks and costumes and sugar skulls that kids paint.

Many famous and folk artists have been inspired by Day of the Dead, including Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqeiros, Jose Clemente Orozco and Rufino Tamayo.

One figure that keeps popping up at this time of year is La Calavera Catrina, also known as La Catrina. “La Calavera Catrina” is a 1913 zinc etching done by Mexican printmaker José Guadalupe Posada.

La Catrina is an upper class woman who wears an ornate dress and often a large hat. Yet, she’s still a skeleton, still among the dead and not the living. The La Catrina print was popular during Posada’s day, but then lost its popularity over time. She was revived by French artist and art historian Jean Charlot in the 1920s, after the Mexican Revolution.

Famed Mexican muralist Diego Rivera incorporated La Catrina in his 1947-48 mural, “Dream of a Sunday in Alameda Park.” Rivera also included himself, his wife Frida Kahlo and Posada in the work.

In Anaheim, the first Día de los Muertos Music and Cultural Festival on Sunday featured live music, custom cars, lowriders, a couple of La Catrina costume contests and more than 20 vendors hawking t-shirts and designed clothing.

The vendors included Kustom Voodoo from L.A., To Die For from Costa Mesa, and Hoodlums for Life from Long Beach. Two guys from taxcannabis.org were also in attendance, getting people to sign for a legalization of marijuana ballot initiative in November 2010.

Anyway, it was interesting how cultures have crossed at the Anaheim festival, and how the imagery and designs from Day of the Dead have attracted those who follow the rockabilly, Kustom Car and lowrider scenes. Tattoo enthusiasts were also in abundance.

The Day of the Dead celebrations will continue in Santa Ana on Saturday, Nov. 7. Noche de Altares is scheduled for 2-10 p.m. at the Fiesta Marketplace, on the corner of Bush and 3rd streets.

Previous posts on Visual Art by Richard Chang that you may have missed:

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