The Latin American Cultural Center (LACC), located at 4338 Bigelow Boulevard in the Oakland section of the city, announced its new special exhibit Mexican Masks: Symbols, Celebrations, Satire, and Safety that will be on display until April 20, 2024.
The exhibit displays the use of masks before Spanish colonization, as well as showcasing how mask forms throughout the country have evolved to their current uses in celebrations, festivals, and other intriguing ways.
Highlighted are masks used in festivals in four diverse regions of Mexico. The exhibit also demonstrates how masks have become works of art cherished by tourists and collectors from around the world in addition to being essential to religious ceremonies. Additionally, symbols and themes from these masks have been appropriated for the costumes worn by freestyle wrestlers in Mexico. Finally, several fine examples are shown of how traditional mask-makers have portrayed the COVID-19 virus in contemporary masks.
Mexican Masks includes photos, artworks, videos, and masks—both ancient and contemporary—from diverse regions of Mexico to highlight the prominent roles that masks have in the country’s culture. LACC staff borrowed objects from private collections and with the collaboration of anthropologists at the renowned Escuela Nacional de Antropología e Historia (ENAH) in Mexico City.
In all, 88 spectacular masks are displayed, along with photos and videos showing how these masks are used in festivals in Mexican communities.
Tickets to visit Mexican Masks can be booked at http://lacc.lasaweb.org. An online version of the exhibit is also available at that same web address.
