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Mother spirit of this project: Frida Kahlo
the project:
a procession of mourners along the banks of the Seine. To occure in Spring 2009.
mourning is a transition from dark into light – pain into acceptance. that dark to light naturally occurs in the transition form winter into spring. It is also the time of easter in the catholic calendar – where jesus is crucified. we hear this sentence so often, it is so engrained in our consciousness that it has lost it’s significance among the pastel colored jellybeans. easter is about candy now minus Lent. We no longer sacrifice or reflect on mourning at this time of year.
Lent is a season of soul-searching and repentance. It is a season for reflection and taking stock. Lent originated in the very earliest days of the Church as a preparatory time for Easter, when the faithful rededicated themselves and when converts were instructed in the faith and prepared for baptism. By observing the forty days of Lent, the individual Christian imitates Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness for forty days. All churches that have a continuous history extending before AD 1500 observe Lent. The ancient church that wrote, collected, canonized, and propagated the New Testament also observed Lent, believing it to be a commandment from the apostles. (See The Apostolic Constitutions, Book V, Section III.) (http://www.kencollins.com/holy-04.htm)
I also look to El dia de los Muertos. Although it occurs November 1st it is a celebration of the Dead.
Carlos Miller
The Arizona Republic
(http://www.azcentral.com/ent/dead/history/)
More than 500 years ago, when the Spanish Conquistadors landed in what is now Mexico, they encountered natives practicing a ritual that seemed to mock death.
It was a ritual the indigenous people had been practicing at least 3,000 years. A ritual the Spaniards would try unsuccessfully to eradicate.
A ritual known today as Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. The ritual is celebrated in Mexico and certain parts of the United States, including the Valley.
Celebrations are held each year in Mesa, Chandler, Guadalupe and at Arizona State University. Although the ritual has since been merged with Catholic theology, it still maintains the basic principles of the Aztec ritual, such as the use of skulls.
Today, people don wooden skull masks called calacas and dance in honor of their deceased relatives. The wooden skulls are also placed on altars that are dedicated to the dead. Sugar skulls, made with the names of the dead person on the forehead, are eaten by a relative or friend, according to Mary J. Adrade, who has written three books on the ritual.
The Aztecs and other Meso-American civilizations kept skulls as trophies and displayed them during the ritual. The skulls were used to symbolize death and rebirth.
The skulls were used to honor the dead, whom the Aztecs and other Meso-American civilizations believed came back to visit during the monthlong ritual.
Unlike the Spaniards, who viewed death as the end of life, the natives viewed it as the continuation of life. Instead of fearing death, they embraced it. To them, life was a dream and only in death did they become truly awake.
It is this concept that I want to focus on – the transition from death into life and vice versa. I think too often in american and european cultures death is so segregated from our lives, thus creating a fear of something natural. Death is here, it is essential. there is nothing to fear. Experiencing death in your life is transformative. It is painful, but once having gone through it you can not recognize it’s power and honour it. The power of nature is the only thing that humbles us humans.
Coming full circle I also look to the holiday Holi – celebrated in the hindu culture.
Holi (Hindi), or Phagwa (Bhojpuri), also called the Festival of Colours, is a popular Hindu spring festival observed in India, Guyana, Trinidad, and Nepal. In West Bengal, it is known as Dolyatra (Doljatra) or Boshonto Utsav (“spring festival”).
On the first day, burning of the demoness Holika, Hiranyakashipu’s sister, in a huge bonfires at night. It is called as Kama dahanam in Andhra Pradesh.
On the second day, known as Dhulhendi, people spend the day throwing colored powder and water at each other. The spring season, during which the weather changes, is believed to cause viral fever and cold. Thus, the playful throwing of the colored powders has a medicinal significance: the colors are traditionally made of Neem, Kumkum, Haldi, Bilva, and other medicinal herbs prescribed by Āyurvedic doctors. A special drink called thandai is prepared, sometimes containing bhang (Cannabis sativa).
Rangapanchami occurs a few days later on a Panchami (fifth day of the full moon), marking the end of festivities involving colours.
As one function of The Company Collectif there will be short reviews of expositions here in Paris. There will also be expositions posted by other authors in different cities.
Check it out: ¤¤¤¤¤
Let us know at The CC if you have know of something we should post: thecompanycollectif@gmail.com
getting by with a little help from your friends
I’d like to introduce my new project! It’s an online space where artists can come to work with other artists.
strangersouvenez