Another Day of the Dead altar: more subdued

Tucson’s Park Place Mall celebrated the Dia de los Muertos in a more limited fashion this year than last. Yes, like last year there was an altar created by design professionals, not by someone’s niece or abuela. Yes, there were artists painting in the wide hallways, but only two this year. Face painters held their own — same number as last year. Interestingly, the children’s play area and the food court were packed, unlike last year. But change happens and it was fun taking photos and having a mid-day snack of frozen yogurt.

So here is what I saw on Saturday, starting with the altar.

Looking closer at the altar one thing jumped out at me–unlike at the MSA Annex altar, there was food on the altar to feed the spirits of the dead. And while I was admiring the beans, chilis and miniature pumpkins in baskets, a Mall employee, Amanda, told me that the food, including some very realistic Mexican pastries, and the cactus were all paper mache, made by artist Sandy Villegas. The passing of one of the Ronstadt family members was commemorated with a card and photo, next to the sugar skull, below.

In the corners of the altar were the traditional La Calavera Catrina figures and some non-traditional puppets. If these puppets are traditional, they are not something I know about, unlike Catrina, a figure developed by cartoonist Jose Posada in Mexico City in 1913 to mock upper-class Mexican ladies’ elaborate clothing.

And what would any Mexican celebration be without women with flowered headbands, a la Frida Kahlo. The woman on the left powered-up her style by adding a skeleton vest with a spider web weave look over her blue camisole.

Next to the altar was a cleared space for Folklore dancers and, at the end of the day’s program, a mariachi band–always a tradition in Tucson. And beside it were the two artists painting this year–fewer than last year when there were 5 or 6 artists at work scattered around the Mall.

It’s interesting to see that Jesse Perry, right, has smaller works available for sale in addition to his large paintings, below. Pen Macias, right, who is adding to her image of a woman with a brilliant pink background, is better known as a muralist with a whimsical bent.

And I leave you with a face-painter with a family. The little girl was very reluctant to have her face painted even though Mom and Dad were in full make-up. The artist is Ytzel Sanchez who works using the name, May’s Face Painting. The little girl at the left who was just walking by with her family looks on suspiciously and the man on the right with his eyes closed is having half his face painted by another artist.