Fiestas de la Vida

During the fiestas which punctuate the Mexican festival cycle, the tangible and the mystical converge. Fireworks explode into the dark morning sky, creating an artificial dawn which illuminates a town adorned with tissue paper streamers, garlands of flowers and bright cut-paper banners. Groups of masked and costumed dancers parade through village streets during the week of Carnival, sharing in a physical form of ritual which is at once solemn and burlesque. During Holy Week corteges of the faithful carry figures of the suffering Christ through the quiet streets surrounding the zocalo, or public square, in a procession of somber piety. In early November, during the Day of the Dead, families gather at the graves of their loved ones, luring them back to the realm of the living with offerings of fruit, bread, tamales, cigarettes, pulque and flowers. On December 12, an entire nation rises at dawn to serenade a brown-skinned Madonna, a protean icon who is a fusion of patroness of the people, Aztec earth goddess, and Christian saint. At Christmas children swing wildly at a pinata, a large earthenware jar covered withcolored tissue paper and filled with toys and candy, anticipating the sweet booty which is destined to spill out once it is broken.

Although the notion of the fiesta often conjures up images of revelry and excess, these celebrations have profound religious roots. A time of both devotion and diversion, fiestas serve many functions. They fulfill promesas, or vows, to saints, to ensure the well-being of the community, guarantee successful crops, and offer a temporary form of release. They are taken very seriously by the community, with sacrifice and community organization involved in their making. Masks and costumes must be nade, candles molded, processions organized, flowers gathered, churches and saints decorated, graves cleaned. To the Mexican, fiestas are a supreme vehicle for expressing religious faith, devotion, and an unrivaled vitality.

The ceremonial cycle inspires not only celebration and communal solidarity, it also informs artistic production. The objects in this exhibition articulate the profound influence which religious holidays, or holy days, have on the folk art of Mexico. Inspired by and integral to many regional celebrations, they are visual proof of the spiritual dedication of the people who both create and use them.

Curator of the Exhibition
Kaytie Johnson