Student altars honor artists of the past
A 17th- century nun, philosopher and poet, a Pittsburgh- born rapper who died at the age of 26 and a painter known for her use of vibrant colors and unvarnished self-portraits would seem unlikely to share a space.
Yet today, memories of the three come to life under the roof of the SDSU Imperial Valley Library in Día de los Muertos altars honoring Mexican nun and influential writer Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, rapper and music producer Mac Miller and renowned Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
The vivid altars were built by teams of SDSU Imperial Valley students for their art class. Instructor Luis G. Hernandez said the students worked in teams to create their altars for the artist of their choice. The course, ART 387, is designed for students who plan to teach.
The altars will remain on public display until midNovember.
Each altar is rich with unique Mexican cultural symbols and specific items that bring to life the interests and accomplishments of the artist honored. The altars displayed in the campus library also speak volumes about the imagination, creativity and work the student teams put into their project. And they reflect the affection and admiration students have for the subject of their murals.
The six students who made up the team that created the altar for Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, for instance, handcrafted the colorful paper flowers and decorative banners used to decorate the display. They baked the bread placed on the altar. And they put a carved bench before the altar to invite observers to pause and reflect on an extraordinary life.
The students said their history class introduced them to information about Sor Juana, who was a nun and became an important poet, philosopher and writer during the Spanish Golden Age. She also was a musician and composer. She was considered an early feminist whose criticism of misogyny and the hypocrisy of men led to her censure. She died in 1695 after contracting the plague.
While historic representations of Sor Juana’s life appear on the altar in her photo and excerpts of her writing, the students needed
further research to unearth the details needed to also show her human side.
While the lowest level of the altar traditionally includes some foods the honoree prefers, such specific information was not available for Sor Juana. Instead, the students found that she had
written cookbooks. On Sor Juana’s altar, the students represented her tastes by including such details as measuring spoons and ingredients, such as eggs, rice and fruit.
Work on the most detailed altars took hours of research and planning before any
construction began. Most of the students were familiar with the Mexican tradition of Día de los Muertos, however few had celebrated the custom. Some students said the work piqued their interest in the tradition and the life of the artist their altar honored.