What to do with bad photographs?
October 31st, 2011 § Leave a Comment
I had the wonderful opportunity to visit a performance of Mexico City’s Folkloric Ballet Sunday morning. I packed my camera to record the event, to help me remember the experience, but I was prepared for disappointment. My camera is a poor tool for this kind of work and the results were true to my expectations. Most of the photographs were out of focus, the colors were distorted, and although I could improve compositions by cropping, a lot of things I couldn’t fix.
So, I decided to goof around with the photographs, altering them freely. Here’s a sampling:
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Reader, what is your opinion of manipulating photos this way? What do you do when photos have so many problems that standard solutions don’t help? Do photographs altered this way help preserve memories or provide a real record of events?
Beautiful books: Saltillo sarapes
October 26th, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Saltillo sarape, note the Mexican flags used as decorative motifs in the rhombus.
One of the great textile traditions of the world, the magnificent Saltillo sarapes of Mexico have been a symbol of wealth, prestige and rugged individualism for over 250 years. In the second half of the 19th century, beginning with the reign of Mexican Emperor Maximilian, the Saltillo enjoyed a final flowering of artistic achievement.
Sarape Museum in Saltillo, Mexico
The McCormick Gallery in Chicago, Illinois has recently published a comprehensive book on the subject featuring essays by Mark Winter and Thomas McCormick. Winter is the foremost authority on Saltillo Sarapes and McCormick has collected these textiles for 35 years.
Related:
From Smithsonian magazine, click here to read: The Sarape: Latin America’s Wrap for All Seasons | Articulations.
From the McCormick Gallery
Saltillo Sarape, A survey: 1850-1920 by Mark Winter and Tom McCormick
Previously published work on the Saltillo sarape has primarily concentrated on those textiles classified as Classic, that is to say, weavings produced from the eighteenth through the mid-nineteenth centuries. This is certainly understandable as these world-class weavings are among the most magnificent ever produced in any culture. They have always been costly, a sign of wealth and privilege, and they are rare and expensive to collect today. Mark Winter, the foremost authority on the topic, has written insightfully in his essay about the history and development of the Classic Saltillo sarape.
However, Saltillo sarapes woven in the post-classic period, after 1850 and up to the decline of the indigenous Mexican weaving industry in the early twentieth century, have received considerably less attention. This represents a seventy-five year period in which superb examples were produced with an expanded canon of design concepts and the benefit of newly available dyes and yarns. This was also an era of growing nationalism, when the sarape became a symbol of Mexican pride. Tom Mccormick provides new insight on the weavings of this period.
The book, with 112 pages featuring over 100 color illustrations, is available through the gallery or by visiting www.saltillosarape.com.
Fantastic creatures parade through Mexico City
October 22nd, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Saturday, October 22 at 12 noon
5th Annual Parade and Competition of
Monumental Alebrijes (Monumental Fantastic Creatures)
The parade will begin in the Zócalo and continue down 5 de Mayo, Juárez and Paseo de la Reforma avenues until reaching the Angel de la Independence Monument.
After the parade, competitor’s “creatures” will be on exhibit through Sunday, November 6 on the main sidewalks of Paseo de la Reforma, between the Angel de la Independencia monument and Diana Cazadora monument.
Watch portions of the parade here:
Related:
Information about alebrijes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alebrije
MORE masks: Christian Pacheco Quijano’s Lucha Libre art
September 4th, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Recently, reviewing e-subscriptions, I came across the work of a Mexican digital artist using the masks of Lucha Libre/free fight wrestlers as the inspiration for his art.
His illustrations portray “idols of the people” in sometimes ironic and comic form; many of his digital illustrations express his appreciation of magic, fairy tales and fantasy literature. He worked as an editor and illustrator in Europe and holds art exhibits in Mexico City: including the Museum Franz Meyer, the National Center of Arts and MUMEDI, Museum of Mexican Design. (This excerpt was translated from the website, EMERGENTE.COM.MX)
“While at the Gira Telmexhub conference in Mérida, Mexico last weekend, I met artist Christian Pacheco Quijano who showed me his striking series of lucha libre paintings. Seen here, “Príncipe de Seda”/Silk Prince (2010, digital illustration).” Christian Pacheco Quijano ; http://kimbal.com.mx/
About Lucha Libre and the masks: The role masks play in Lucha Libre are important and part of the identity many wrestlers nurture:
“While lucha-purists will argue that the tradition of the mask has been debased in recent years, it is still one of the most distinct characteristics of the style. No single prop is loaded with as much drama as the mask of the luchador. To wear it is to defy the opposition, to deny them your identity and to assume the traits symbolized by the mask itself, becoming larger than life. To lose it is to be forever humbled before your foe, and to be exposed as being all too human…and vulnerable. via [QHQ] Mexican Lucha Libre. * An excellent site that delves into psyche and highly symbolic nature of the sport.
El Santo, el Enmascaro de Plata/The Saint, the Silver Masked (1917-1985).
El Santo was one of the most famous and iconic of all the Mexican luchadores/wrestlers. Santo Biography.
Although this post’s focus is on the work of Quijano, only one image is available to me of his series. You may learn more about him and work on his website. On the contrary, there is a great deal of material on Lucha Libre and El Santo so I’ve decided to share with readers some of the wonderful promotional posters from his movies.
Slideshow
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History of Lucha Libre and Mexican Professional Wrestling. The sport’s history links to a time in Mexican history that coincides with the construction of the Palacio de Bellas Artes, a subject of recent mexicocitylife posts that I hope to renew soon. Lucha Libre began in the 1900′s during the rule of dictator Porfirio Diaz. As is often the case during war or suffering, people seek distractions from their difficulties and Lucha Libre was a colorful distraction.Lucha Libre grew in popularity over time and eventually great luchadores/wrestlers, like El Santo, became celebrities; a comic book featuring El Santo ran continuously for 35 years and he featured in over 52 movies.
Today, Lucha Libre still thrives in Mexico and in the south of the US. Are you a fan of Lucha Libre? If so, share your experiences? Have any favorite luchadores?
A personal note: Like Mexico, people in the US during these troubled years also sought escape, and for those in small towns it was often at the movies, a time when Hollywood provided its audience with fantastical escapist fare. My favorites of this era are from the late 30s when Technicolor arrived: The Wizard of Oz, Singing in the Rain, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, April in Paris, Rear Window, among others. If you lived during Hollywood’s Golden Age, or are a fan of the classics, share some of your favorites.
Speaking OF tongues…
September 2nd, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Speaking of tongues, it looks like these have taken a beating! Due to the ritual use of these masks, I am probably not too far off the mark.
Background information:
These Tigre/Jaguar masks are from Zitlala, Guerrero and are part of the ritual costume of the Holy Cross Feast Day celebrated in early May. Men from the different barrios/neighborhoods put on these masks and jaguar costumes to take part in fierce fighting competitions that involve beating each other over the head with knotted rope. The fighting is a crucial part in petitioning the deities for rain during the spring planting season.
Constructed of sturdy leather, the masks protect the wearer from injury. Painted green or yellow, the color identifies the neighborhood of the participant’s town.
The celebration combines Christian and pre-Columbian elements; offerings left in return for miracles or blessings from the gods are part of pre-hispanic ritual and the people adorn mountain, roadside and village crosses with flowers and various offerings of fruit, bread, poultry and other items. In Guerrero, this festival is closely tied to Tlaloc, the rain god.
Unfortunately, today, it is rare to find an exemplary Zitlala tiger mask; one produced and used in its rightful cultural/ethnic context; of good craftsmanship, age and patina; and, most importantly, one which was not created solely for sale. Over the last half-century (or more,) the violent Dance of the Green and Yellow Tigers attracted cultural anthropologists and ethnographers. As articles appeared in magazines and/or journals, the best of these remarkable masks, from Zitlala in Guerrero, were no doubt acquired by dealers and collectors long ago.
As is so often the case when an item meets with such strong interest, the market today, is inundated with Zitlala tiger replicas by the hundreds if not thousands – but the original craft has been altered, leather has been replaced by wood, and although these new masks are colorful and creative, they bear little resemblance to the older versions.
Tigre/Jaguar mask from the collection of the Museo de Arte Popular/Museum of Folk Art, Mexico City
Contemporary competitor in tigre/jaguar costume and mask with knotted rope whip
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Contemporary Tigre/Jaguar masksBOOKS:
Mascaras: La Otra Cara de Mexico/Masks: The Other Face of Mexico by Victor Jose Moya Rubio. (This book is bilingual.)
Masks of Mexico: Tigers, Devils, and the Dance of Life by Barbara Mauldin
