3D Skull #2

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I have used the Mexican tradition of making Sugar skulls as inspiration for my work in which I created 3D skulls from pieces of Perspex, that have been screen printed with the same type of designs used on a sugar skull.

Many of Aztec and Mexican views about skulls and the afterlife can be related to the beliefs of Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. Aztecs viewed death as “the continuation of life, to them, life was a dream and only in death did they become truly awake”.

The same ideas that the Aztecs believed about keeping preserved skulls can also be seen in early Maori traditions, with the ritual of Mokomokai. Mokomokai are the preserved heads of Maori, often chiefs or high-ranked warriors who wore Moko tattoo on their face.

I am fascinated with the differences between the Maori and Mexican beliefs, from a Maori perspective the skull and head are Tapu and food is noa, the Mexican’s use of the sugar skulls in representing a departed soul emphasizes this dissimilarity.

I think that by creating my work from a modern material and media also plays on this contrast between the Maori and Mexican beliefs. Using Perspex to construct the sugar skull based designs means that it will further appeal to globalized culture, and be more openly viewed by the mainstream population, while also giving them the foundation on which to build their views about skull symbolism.