La Catrina

Catrina's were first created by a Political satirist Jose Guadalupe Posada to mock the upper classes and political injustice. La Catrina's as they are called is now a symbol of Day of the Dead celebrations held in Mexico every November. Wearing her signature hat she depicts a turn of the century upper class lady.

Today Mexican folk artists emulate Posada’s work, recreating La Catrina in wood carvings, ceramics, paintings and other mediums.

I had been to Mexico to witness and document the Day of the Dead festival. During this trip, with the help of my guide, I had the privilege to meet one such family who specialize in making clay Catrina's. The DeLa Cruz family is from Capula, a small village on the outskirts of Patzcuaro in the state of Michoacan. The Dela Cruz family started the tradition of making clay Catrina's in Capula. Now most of the residents earn a living by making Catrina's. In fact the Catrina's made in Capula are famous throughout the state of Michoacan. These are sold during the Day of the Dead celebrations.





The unique thing about this family is, each member does their own Catrina from start to finish, thus giving their signature style. This is different than most people in Capula who work together thus dividing the labor among them, thereby preferring cost and time over uniqueness and signature style.

Click on the slideshow to see the entire gallery.