Death has many faces, but in Mexico none is more identifiable than La Calavera Catrina. Immortalized more than a century ago by Jose Guadalupe Posdada, the elegant skeleton with the broad grin and the fancy feathered hat has come to personify the irreverent side of November 2, Day of the Dead festivities.
Posada depicted calaveras (skulls) and calacas (skeletons) at work and at play in scores of whimsical engravings that have delighted generations of Mexicans and remain his greatest claim to fame. Beyond that single theme, he was a hugely talented graphic artist whose vibrant illustrations and biting political cartoons reflect the spirit and social climate of a nation on the verge of revolution.
Born in the city of Aguascalientes in 1852, Posada grew up in troubled times as Mexico lurched through power struggles between liberal and conservative political factions, the French invasion and rule of Maximilian of Hapsburg, and finally the 30-year dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz. Showing artistic aptitude at an early age, he had landed a job as staff cartoonist for the Aguascalientes daily El Jicote by the time he turned 19. He moved on to Leon, Guanajuato, where he operated a printing business, married and became master of lithography.
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