Playing Dead

Every year I visit Mexico during Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Not only is this a marvelous event where relatives celebrate the memories of the deceased, but it is also a chance for the living to mock the reaper. It’s a way for the living to say: “Neener, neener you haven’t got me yet”. One of the ways that Mexicans do this is with little skeletal toys known as “calacas”. Usually they are playful scenes where the skeletons are in the engaged in everyday activities, riding bicycles, walking dogs, dancing with devils (okay, so this one is perhaps not an everyday activity). The idea is to have a little fun with ones morality. Well, that is what we’ll be doing in class. Using doll parts, action figures, and other found objects student will create little skeletons that will tickle your funny bone.

Supply List:

• Small dolls, action figures, or figurines to be dismantled.
• Toy skulls or skeletons. Keep your eyes open at the Dollar Stores during Halloween. Sometimes bead stores carry interesting things too.
• A base to work from. This can be a piece of wood, a few pieces of balsa wood, a little nook or a found object of some kind.
• Aves Apoxy Clay ¼ lbs minimum
• E6000 adhesive
• DAP KWIK SEAL Tub & Tile Adhesive Caulk (White)
• Variety of other found objects that might be interesting additions to the skeletal toys. Items like watch parts, gears, typewriter parts….just about anything, really.
• Paint Brushes (a couple small detail brushes, and some cheap brushes (1/2 inch to 1 inch in size)
• Wire a couple of different gauges
• Basic Tools…pliers, scissors,
• Molding Paste (Golden or Liquitex)
• Matte Medium
• Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold (acrylic paint by Golden)
• TitaniumWhite (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Carbon or Mars Black (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Pthalo Green blue shade (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Dioxazine Purple (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Quinacridone Crimson (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Anthraquinone Blue (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Van Dyke Brown (acrylic paint by Golden)
• Graphite Gray (acrylic paint by Golden) optional