02/11/2024
Who is La Catrina?
La Catrina is a character created by the Mexican painter, illustrator and caricaturist from Aguascalientes, José Guadalupe Posada, she is the figure most associated with the Day of the Dead and death in general in our country, being one of the icons with which Mexico is known throughout the world.
It is worth mentioning that the original version of La Catrina is a metal engraving by the artist.
Its original name is “La Calavera Garbancera” (The Garbancera Skull), “garbancera” is the word that was used back then to refer to people who, despite having indigenous blood, stopped selling corn to sell chickpeas, pretending to be Europeans, whether Spanish or French, thus denying their own race, heritage and culture.
Originally, the skull is not dressed, it only wears a hat, which has been interpreted as a criticism of the poverty in which Mexicans lived.
It was not until 1947 when the muralist Diego Rivera used this character, giving her the elegant outfit that we all know today, baptizing her as “La Catrina” in his mural “Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Central”.
