Sugar Skullz
Mexican folk art project
Introduction
So the project i had been tasked with is making a Mexican Folk Art inspired/motivated candy skull or sugar skull as most people know it as. Mexican folk art or "Folk Art" is the name given to the artistic creations made by peasants ,Indigenous people or craftsmen with no formal artist training. A folk art item is handmade and has a functional purpose opposing an art object that is made for. Aesthetic purposes only, or in this case folk art in the Mexican division. Sugar skulls are commonly made for "Day of the Dead" a Mexican tradition that honors the dead/ deceased loved ones. It is believed that the gates of heaven are opened at midnight on October31, and the spirits of the deceased children are allowed to reunite with their families for 24 hours. And on November 2, the spirits of the adults come down to enjoy the festivities that are prepared for them.
More info
Explanation
With the previous Info i had to make the skull in a fashion that general Mexican folk artists would do. And that would be through Sugar Skull and alot of distinctive coloring, contrast, and Emphasis along with alot of patterns. However instead of going all crazy with the patterns i decided to go with a simpler approach..and also i could'nt paint that well, but thats besides the point.
My inspiration for this Project was an art piece made by an Artist named Zed Nooke and his contrast and colorful paintings. I Never really intended to have a personal statement to incorporate into my sugar skull.Its really just for the purpose of doing it. To be honest Im not really interested in traditional folk art, not saying It's not interesting but it isn't my cup of tea.
My inspiration for this Project was an art piece made by an Artist named Zed Nooke and his contrast and colorful paintings. I Never really intended to have a personal statement to incorporate into my sugar skull.Its really just for the purpose of doing it. To be honest Im not really interested in traditional folk art, not saying It's not interesting but it isn't my cup of tea.
My Artwork
So what i did for my sugar skull was first i took tin foil and a plastic skull model. I wrapped the tin foil around the plastic skull so that i could mold the tin foil into the shape of the skull model. Once the shape has been formed i took a bunch of old newspapers and ripped them up into pieces to use for paper mache. I dipped the ripped pieces into glue and put them onto the tin foil until there was a thick layer of paper pieces onto the skull. Once that was complete i took some tissue and put it onto the skull to smooth en out the jagged edges for painting. Once the tissue was applied i painted on the desired colors and designed then let it dry. For the background i took a piece of cardboard, glued strips of newspapers onto the edges of the cardboard and painted it white. Then once the paint dried on that i painted a design on top of it.
Inspiration:
For my design choices i was heavily inspired by the game known as Halo. They have helmets that have unique and wierd designs and sometimes even paint on them. It was also the inspiration for my background as halo doesent really use complicated design patterns. Just simple lines or shapes mixed with a bunch of colors or a small amount of colors. I also decided not to go with the traditional black eyes and instead go with white ones because.. i wanted to. Although for most of the time i have been sick and out of school i couldn't really be here to apply all of the time needed to fully complete this. work.
Inspiration:
For my design choices i was heavily inspired by the game known as Halo. They have helmets that have unique and wierd designs and sometimes even paint on them. It was also the inspiration for my background as halo doesent really use complicated design patterns. Just simple lines or shapes mixed with a bunch of colors or a small amount of colors. I also decided not to go with the traditional black eyes and instead go with white ones because.. i wanted to. Although for most of the time i have been sick and out of school i couldn't really be here to apply all of the time needed to fully complete this. work.