Puebla (Mexico), Oct 11 (EFE).- About 70 artisans from Atlixco, a town in central Mexico, are now making dozens of giant skulls to install the ‘Valle de Catrinas’ this Friday and commemorate the Day of the Dead, the November 1 and 2.
For this edition, whose theme will be ‘Mexican Historical Characters’, they will place 11 in the streets of the municipality, located in the state of Puebla, in addition to two in surrounding communities, two in the airports of Mexico City, and six more in Rome, Italy; and New York and Los Angeles, in the United States.
These catrinas, figures of skulls created by the illustrator José Guadalupe Posada and named after the muralist Diego Rivera, will measure about 8 meters high and 4 or 5 meters wide.
Their creators have been working on them for about six months, as they plan them from their conceptualization on paper and then begin the creation of the metal bases, which takes about two months, and then they use the cardboard technique to shape them.
With paper, cardboard and glue, they shape the giant skeletons with their hands.
Once they are dry, another group of artisans paints them and recreates icons of the Revolution and Independence of Mexico, such as the revolutionary Adelita, the boy hero Juan Escutia, Emiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa, José María Morelos, and even a xoloitzcuintle dog , a breed native to Mexico that is associated with death.
Valerie Bartsch Aburto, councilor for Tourism, Art and Native Peoples of Atlixco, explained to EFE that the ‘Valley of the Catrinas’ will be there from October 11 to November 10.
“(It is) a totally new design to what has been seen in past editions, I assure you that you have to come visit them, this year the theme is Mexican historical figures and, as you can see, some are already being identifiable,” he expressed. .
The artisan Hilario Jiménez shared that he is part of the blacksmith team, the most creative and fundamental part of the entire process, because they make the metal skeleton for each one and they must be precise.
“For example, in the metal base of China Poblana (a character that represents a woman from the center of the country) it took me a week and a half, since we used (we used) tubes, round tubes, square tubular, angles and welding,” he counted.
.
#Artisans #giant #skulls #celebrate #Day #Dead #Mexico
