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| My first sketch of a Cham dancer. The background is a piece of discarded architect's tracing that has layers of different colors of acrylics, with a thin top layer of white applied with a rib. |
Happy New Year! This mask is inspired by Tibetan Cham dance costumes. Skeletons represent the disintegration of the body and states of mind. The stylized dance shows the liberation that follows acceptance of the impermanence of life. The dancers usually have crowns with 5 human skulls on their heads and fan shaped ornaments on their ears. I took some liberties to make the mask easier to cut out and fit in a regular sized envelope.
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| Tibetan Cham dance mask modeled by innocent but willing bystanders. |
There is a video of the Cham dance here.
After testing several ideas for this year's mask, this one was the most appealing. Although Tibetans don't see the skull as terrifying, I think my western feelings about death and the current state of world affairs have crept into the mask. Yes we can be liberated by accepting the idea of death. But I am also thinking about the potential death of our world and our democracy. Is this a time to dance? Probably not in happiness, but maybe in protest. Download the mask here.
I hope you all find some peace and joy in these crazy times.
Judy
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