Manuel Macarrulla, 2014
Carnaval 1
Acrylic inks, acrylics
10" X 7
The picture above is a fantasy based on the carnival of Santiago, Dominican Republic, a frequent inspiration for my pictures.
I'm aware that people sometimes take these carnival costumes as hailing from a world of monsters; from an "unnatural" world. I mean to make it clear that their provenance is very much a Caribbean, rural society. So, I make a point of including animal life, fruit vendors, or the simple concrete constructions, or, wooden clapboard homes, of the type commonly found in Dominican places (the setting where the event happens), to drive home the point.
Yet, I do not mind the figures alluding to the supernatural. Remember that an important aspect of carnival, often overlooked, is religious. By donning a costume and enacting certain behaviors, you "let the devil out of yourself," as a purifying ritual. Although most of us are content to just think of the scene as a fun party. That's fine, too.
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