Date: Sunday, October 26th
Time: 1pm to 6pm
Admission: $100 ( Tickets Here )

Presented by Salvador Olguín, Morbid Anatomy “Death in Mexico” Scholar in Residence, co-sponsored by the Mexican Cultural Institute of New York.
Full list of events here

( Ticket also gets you admission to the Morbid Anatomy Museum and the “Art of Mourning” Exhibit )

Papel picado is a decorative paper folk art from Mexico. In a way, papel picado-literally ‘punched’ or ‘perforated’ paper-belongs to a wider tradition of paper cutting art shared by countries like China, Japan, Vietnam, Russia, Israel, India, and others. The Mexican art of papel picado, however, has features that make it unique, such as the use of delicate tissue paper and the utilization of small chisels instead of scissors, which allows to create several copies of the design at a time.

The exact origins of papel picado in Mexico are uncertain, but they are inevitably linked to the economic and cultural exchange generated in the colonial period by the Manila Galleons trade route established between the cities of Acapulco and Manila from 1565 to 1815. This route, known in Mexico as “La Nao de China”, was the first truly global maritime trade route in history, and the longest in its time, allowing the exchange of highly desired goods such as spices, porcelain, ivory. Among these goods was the tissue paper used for papel picado, or “papel de China” as it is known in Mexico.

Some experts have found a connection between papel picado and amate, a form of bark paper that has been manufactured in Mexico since the pre-Hispanic times. The Aztecs used this paper in their rituals to make offerings, banners and religious vestments. Thus the association to papel picado, which has been traditionally used as part of the offerings in the altares during the Mexican Day of the Dead, and to create assorted strings of papel picado called “enramadas” that are strung about during other festivities — a practice that echoes the Spanish custom of decorating portals and streets with paper garlands for the same purposes. Thus, the art of papel picado was born out of the cultural and religious syncretism of cosmopolite Colonial Mexico, a melting pot not only of pre-Hispanic and Spanish traditions, but also of others like the Chinese, Japanese and Arabic ones, whose influence in many other Mexican folk arts, like ceramics and textiles, is well documented.

During this workshop the participants will make their own papel picado creations withdrawing inspiration from the traditional techniques and motives of the art of papel picado in Mexico.

Rebeca Olguin lives Brooklyn, New York, where she works as a graphic designer and illustrator. She’s involved in various artistic projects in the city, and is often seeking new ways of collaborating with other artists across different artistic disciplines. Her paintings, drawings and illustrations combine techniques and media. She likes working with unconventional materials such as old books and children’s stamps. The colors and textures of New York City are a constant inspiration for her work and in my life.