
On the Path of the Marigolds
Living Traditions of Mexico's Day of the Dead
Ann Murdy(Author)
George F. Thompson (Publisher)
Published on 3. October 2019
Book
Hardback
160 pages
978-1-938086-72-4 (ISBN)
Description
Photographer Ann Murdy has been documenting the celebrations around Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) in Mexico for more than twenty years. A native of Los Angeles, she first started collecting Chicano art in the 1980s and was drawn to Mexico by the vibrancy of its culture and traditions. She loved the rich colors she found everywhere, from the brilliant reds and blues of the papier-mache flowers adorning the ofrendas or altars to the dead to the dusky yellow of the marigolds lining pathways leading to the ofrendas in both private homes and cemeteries.
As Murdy's hauntingly beautiful images show, in Mexico death is considered a part of life and something to be celebrated rather than feared. El dia de los muertos (which actually lasts two days on November 1-2) is a time to gather with friends and families to feast, pray, dance, and honor the lives of those who have died. From the preparation of the food and flowers to the sanctification of the public and private spaces, to the ceremony itself, Murdy captures the spirt, beauty, and magic of this sacred observance.
On the Path of the Marigolds features ninety of Murdy's most stunning images of celebrations from three villages - Teotitlan del Valle in Oaxaca, Santa Fe de Laguna in Puebla, and Patzcuaro in Michoacan-along with a conversation between her and Cesareo Moreno, Director of Visual Arts and Chief Curator of the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago, and an essay by Mexican-American writer Denise Chavez.
As Murdy's hauntingly beautiful images show, in Mexico death is considered a part of life and something to be celebrated rather than feared. El dia de los muertos (which actually lasts two days on November 1-2) is a time to gather with friends and families to feast, pray, dance, and honor the lives of those who have died. From the preparation of the food and flowers to the sanctification of the public and private spaces, to the ceremony itself, Murdy captures the spirt, beauty, and magic of this sacred observance.
On the Path of the Marigolds features ninety of Murdy's most stunning images of celebrations from three villages - Teotitlan del Valle in Oaxaca, Santa Fe de Laguna in Puebla, and Patzcuaro in Michoacan-along with a conversation between her and Cesareo Moreno, Director of Visual Arts and Chief Curator of the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago, and an essay by Mexican-American writer Denise Chavez.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
VA
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
90 color photographs
Dimensions
Height: 292 mm
Width: 254 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-938086-72-4 (9781938086724)
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Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Ann Murdy is a photographer based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her work has been shown at the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach, CA, the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago, IL, the California Heritage Museum in Santa Monica, CA, and Museo Chicano in Phoenix, AZ , among others. Denise Chavez is a performance artist, novelist, and teacher whose work celebrates the border corridor of southern New Mexico, West Texas, and northern Mexico. Her books include a novel, Face of an Angel (1994), and The King and Queen of Comezon (2014). Cesareo Moreno has been the visual arts director of the National Museum of Mexican Art since 1995 and was named the museum's first full-time curator in 2004.