What Are Muertitas?
Muertitas are my sculptures of nature spirits who guard the memory of those we have lost. I grew up surrounded by family from Hungary and Michoacán. This shared immigrant experience gave Día De Los Muertos a very special place in my development. The the art of the sugar skull is a powerful visual to help me express joy of life and the struggle with finality. These mixed media wall pieces explore my artistic influences and the cycles of nature. Birth, death, and rebirth are all fascinating concepts to me.
What Is Your Process?
Come visit me on Patreon for behind the scenes looks, and I answer questions there.
Are You Taking Comissions?
Due to the loss of both my parents this year, at present, I am not taking any commissions. However, if you would like to get an updates, sign up for my mailing list here. I promise the emails are sparse, and I don’t share your information. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Are Any Muertitas Available for Purchase?
The best thing to do is to get the most recent updates by signing up for my mailing list.
Do You Sculpt A Lot?
My past work is mostly acrylic and watercolor paintings focusing on character art and storytelling, so this series is brand new to me. Sculpting has always been something to enjoy, but this is the first series where I have brought anything 3-dimensional to a finish. These days, I am surprised I am sculpting more than I paint.
What Inspired These?
I have sculpted before in the past, but my pieces were personal and not created for gallery viewing. Most people were familiar with my paintings and illustrations. In August 2012, San Fernando Valley based artist collective called 11:11 A Creative Collective challenged artists to create a piece from a styrofoam head for a group show called Heads Will Roll. Inspired by the generous nature of the open call, I sculpted one of the characters from an unpublished story. They have caught on, and now people know me more of these sculptures than the rest of my work.
Will we know about this unpublished story?
YES! I have every intention of publishing it! I just need to finish it…
Are Your Making More?
Yes, and even despite how long it takes to make one. I look forward to making more. One Muertita takes months to complete.
About The Photos
Chris Rigg of Chris Rigg Photography took them. He has done an incredible job, and created something for my sculptures which is hard to do: capture the feeling of a 3 dimensional work of art in a beautifully made photo.
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