Jerry Vigil, Chicano Artist

Muertos Gallery

El dia de los Muertos has a few identifying symbols and images. The Calavera or skeleton is one. The use of "skeletons" or other icons deemed " Horrifying" to western cultures is a matter of cultural context. To the Mexican culture the specter of death is much closer and more tangible; it is a closer fact of life than in first world cultures. To embrace the looming specter the celebration and the art of the Day of the Dead is meant to bring satire and to remove the fear of the inevitable by placing the every day into and out of the realm of the dead.

This is a style I created; I have taken from the traditional "folk" style of the calavera and I have contemporized it. In one traditional application of the use of the calavera, the art piece is used to create a visual commentary of everyday life and events.

Some of these photos are of commissioned pieces people asked for in their image and some are from a series that I am/have created on stereo types. Some are just fanciful calaveras.

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