Art Installation Photos: El vuelo de los espíritus

This October I had the opportunity to be lead painter in a community art installation project with Tracy Ferron’s Life On Earth Art and The Museum of Sonoma County’s 25th Annual “Día de los Muertos” Exhibition (Open October 16 – November 7, 2021). The installation is in the stairway leading up to the second floor where there are several other beautiful community altars installed.

“The Museum’s annual Día de los Muertos exhibition features artwork and altars created by local artists, students, and collectors. Artists featured in this year’s exhibition include: Cecilia Diaz Cortez, Tracy Ferron, Nathan Gomez, Rubén Guzmán, Alejandro Salazar, the Urena family, and students from Luther Burbank Elementary School, in collaboration with Maria de Los Angeles. Altars are curated by Liz Camino-Byers, Israel Escudero Galeana, and the City of Santa Rosa’s Multicultural Roots Project.”

The Flight of the Spirits Photos

We create 88 hearts in sizes from six inches to three feet over a few weeks and three community art days. The winged hearts commemorate loved ones who have died. It was an honor to grieve in the community and heal with art making.

The installation also features are two skeletons and a couple of beautiful scrolls with the text in Spanish and English. They are made using a traditional method Cartonería, the making of three-dimensional sculptures with papier-mâché, which is part of Mexico’s tradition of paper-based handcrafts.

This installation is about 5% the scale of the Unbound project. I will be working with this Cartonería method and painting hundreds of hearts with the community for the winter. More information about the project is online: https://www.lifeonearthart.com/artwork/unbound