Día de los Muertos
In 2018 and 2019 the Bath Carnival team produced an immersive installation at SouthGate Bath as part of a series of community projects exploring different cultures from around the world.
Our artists spent months researching the cultures and traditions behind Día de los Muertos, working closely with Mexican audio-visual artist Pablo Villierezz, a specialist on this fascinating Mexican celebration.
As part of the project we worked with local junior school, Oldfield Park Juniors, students from Bath Spa University and local community groups to educate them about this wonderful culture. Both year’s culminated with a colourful free parade through the city centre in October. While parades are not synonymous with Day of the Dead in Mexico, our own community procession was inspired by the recent parades held in Mexico City.
THE PARADE
TRADITIONAL MASK MAKING WORKSHOPS
Our community artists spent a lot of time researching this fascinating culture, and were particularly grateful to Mexican audio-visual artist, Pablo Villierezz, who was a valuable source of knowledge and advice in creating the project. Pablo also led traditional children’s mask making workshops as well as unveiling a unique projection show to kick off the parade!
The 2019
HALLOWEEN FUNDRAISER
ABOUT DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS
‘Day of the dead’
Though related Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is not a Mexican version of Halloween and they differ in traditions and tone.
The focus of the festival is celebrating the love and respect held for past family members. Revellers throughout Latin America wear vibrant makeup and costumes, dance in parades and make offerings to loved ones passed.
By keeping their memory alive, spirits may temporarily return to earth during the Día de los Muertos festivities. Today these celebrations take place on November 1st and 2nd.
ABOUT the INSTALLATION
While the styles and customs associated with Día de los Muertos vary by region, our installation at SouthGate Bath was intended to capture the essence of the holiday, incorporating common colour palettes, objects and traditional terminology associated with the holiday.
CEMPAZUCHITLS
The walkways in SouthGate featured 20,000 individual marigolds (cempazuchitls). The flowers’ colour and scent are believed to guide souls back from the dead.
CALACAS
Calacas are the skeletons synonymous with the festival. A trio of calacas were on display in SouthGate, depicted as Mariachi musicians, a musical genre originating from Western Mexico.
CALAVERAS
Colourful representations of the human skull, often depicted in drawings, engravings, cartoons, or models as part of the Día de los Muertos celebrations. Seven large calaveras were constructed for this project and decorated with marigolds and ribbon.
CATRINA
Based on the Mexican engraver/artist José Posada’s female skeleton character dressed in 19th century costume. A life-sized Lady Catrina was sat in SouthGate wearing her iconic feathered hat.
ALEBREJES
One of the most recognisable symbols of Mexican culture, alebrijes are colourful sculptures of fantastical creatures. Although not specifically associated with Día de los Muertos, many large cities in Mexico finance large displays of alebrijes to coincide with the festival. A collection of these vibrant animals in skeleton form were hidden throughout SouthGate for children to find:
GATOS Y RATA Cat and Rat
CINO PAJARITOS Five Baby Birds
BÚHO Owl
FAMILIA DE MURCIÉLAFOS Family of Bats
BUITRE Vulture
CAMALEÓN Chameleon