ROCK PAPER AND SCISSORS
- MEMO 11 / OCTOBER 2023 - PAPEL PICADO. With expressive colors, intricate patterns and designs alluding to life and death, papel picado is an ancestral craft that continues to develop, and in different regions they have developed their own distinctive techniques and styles.
The beauty of La Catrina, that elegant and skeletal lady who personifies death with a touch of humor and grace, has been immortalized in papel picado (cut paper decorations). She dresses elegantly in the high-society attire of the Porfirian era, characterized by her hat adorned with feathers and her carefree attitude. This image was popularized by a series of engravings created in the early 20th century by the Mexican illustrator and engraver José Guadalupe Posada. Posada was known for his sharp social criticism and satirical style, and he often accompanied his graphic work with verses or literary calaveras (skull poems).
La Catrina embodies the idea that death is a universal equalizer, affecting all social classes equally, regardless of how rich or powerful people were in life. The figure of La Catrina challenges the notion that death should be feared and instead presents it as a natural and, in a sense, festive part of the human experience.
And what would the Day of the Dead celebration be without the iconic Catrinas made of papel picado? In honor of these traditions and Posada's legacy, we present a collection of this craft that celebrates creativity and ingenuity.
In homage to these traditions and to Posada's legacy, we present a collection of this craft that celebrates creativity, ingenuity, and death.