MEXICAN DAY OF THE DEAD

YEAR 8 PROJECT

LESSON OBJECTIVE

During this lesson the objective is for you to explore and learn a little about the Mexican Day Of the Dead festival.

You will learn a little about the Mexican culture in relation to this festival.

LESSON AIMThe aim of the lesson will be to begin analyse images from this festival. You may then use what you noted to inform your learning in order for you to begin creating effective

images of your own. You will then draw some items which relate to the festival.

Mexico celebrates a yearly tradition called Day of the Dead during the last days of October and the first days of November.

Due to the duration of this festivity and the way people get involved it has been called "The Cult of Death."

As in many Latin American countries, Mexico commemorates the Day of the Dead or All Souls’ Day on November 2nd.

On this occasion people believe that death is a transition from one life to another in different levels, where communication exists between the living and the dead. This communication

takes place once a year throughout the country.

Therefore, the Day of the Dead in Mexico is not a mournful commemoration but a happy and colorful celebration where

death takes a lively, friendly expression.

Differing from the Roman Catholic imposed ritual to commemorate All Souls’ Day, which is observed in many countries, the custom established by pre-colonial Mexican civilizations become a ceremony where indigenous beliefs blended with Catholic beliefs.

• Indigenous people believed that souls did not die, that they continued living in Mictlan, a special place to rest. In this place, the spirits rest until the day they could return to their homes to visit their relatives.

• Before the Spaniards arrived, they celebrated the return of the souls between the months of July and August. Once arrived, the Spaniards changed the festivities to November 2nd to coincide with All Souls’ Day of the Catholic Church.

• Presently, two celebrations honoring the memory of loved ones who have died take place:

• On November 1st, the souls of the children are honored with special designs in the altars, using color white on flowers and candles.

• On November 2nd the souls of the adults are remembered with a variety of rituals, according to the different states of the Mexican republic. The celebrations of Day of the Dead or All Souls Day are referred to differently in some of the states.

The Festival

Purple: signifies pain, suffering, grief, and mourning.

Pink: celebration

White: purity and hope

Orange: sun

Red: the blood of life

Yellow: cempazuchitl aremarigolds that symbolize death. Petals are used to make a trail so that the spirits can see the path to their altars.

Colour meanings in the D.O.T.D. Celebrations.

• Before you start to draw, I would like you to observe first carefully the total shape enlarged, eye openings and their shape. They are not round but rather irregularly prolonged like a deformed egg. The openings are not just complete black holes.

Draw a simple outline of the skull first. Whatever shape is OK on the first try, it doesn’t need to resemble to this drawing at all.If you learn how to draw skulls the very first time, outline the entire shape by tilted loose hold pencil, the strokes would be more accurate and you will probably capture almost the perfect shape on the first try. This method works.

Start to shade the top of the head and the eye openings. Slightly shade those parts, which will be darkened later.

Lets start to gradually darken the eye and nasal (nose) openings. These three holes will probably be of the darkest tone on the skull drawing. Slightly outline the teeth too.