Transcript Dia de los Muertos November 2nd

Dia de los Muertos
Created and presented by Mr. Ruben
Dia de los Muertos
November 2nd
•
Day of the Dead is a holiday (or festival) when family members who
have died are remembered. In Mexico, this festival is considered to be
the most important holiday of the year.
•
It is a period full of life, happiness, color, food, family, and fun.
•
Outdoor markets sell many symbolic goods, such as special breads,
flowers, pottery, baskets, candles, paper puppets, candy skulls, etc.
The main symbols of this holiday are skulls and skeletons.
Marigolds-"flower
of the dead”
believed to attract
the souls and draw
them back.
Sugar Skulls
•
Mexico, abundant in sugar production
and too poor to buy fancy imported
European church decorations, learned
quickly from the friars how to make
sugar art for their religious festivals.
Sugar skulls represent a departed soul
and honor the return of a particular
spirit.
•
Sugar skulls are labor intensive and
made in very small batches in the
homes of sugar skull makers. These
wonderful artisans are disappearing as
fabricated and imported candy skulls
take their place.
Sugar Skull Clay Relief
• Relief = means to
RAISE
• Skulls should include
several elements that
are raised above
(3D) the background
plan.
• Painted designs are
in addition to these
areas.
Why Skulls?
The skull is about the most important symbol in Mexican Day of
the Dead Culture, because it symbolizes the soul. The idea is
that just as the bones remain after the flesh has been rotted
away, the soul remains after the body is discarded.
Origins of The Day of the
Dead
The Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico developed
from ancient traditions among its pre-Columbian
cultures. Rituals celebrating the deaths
of ancestors had been observed by these civilizations
perhaps for as long as 2,500–3,000 years. The festival
that developed into the modern Day of the Dead fell in
the ninth month of the Aztec calendar, about the
beginning of August, and was celebrated for an entire
month
After the Spanish conquest of
Mexico:
The Catholic faith was introduced to the
native people of Mexico by the Spanish;
many of the old religious festivals and
celebrations were incorporated into the
new Christian religion of Mexico; The Day
of the Dead became a fusion of Catholic
and Pre-Columbian practices, celebrated
2 days after All Saints' Eve (commonly
known today as Halloween!)
What are some characteristics
of these designs?
Pattern
Line and Shape
Vibrant
Colors
Black
outlines
Symbols
Now, you are going to create
your own skull for Día de los
Muertos!
• Based on what you have learned and
seen in this PowerPoint, draw and color
your own skull for The Day of the Dead!
Sources of Inspiration for your
Skull
• Aztec Patterns
• Bright Colors and
Shapes
• Animals and Nature of
Mexico
• Intricate Line Designs
• Symbols of personal
importance
• Geometric patterns