Celebration of Death

My aim for this project is to educate my audience about different cultural and religious standpoints on death and the afterlife. For some religion’s Death is the end of life, yet others believe it is just the beginning. The way that we regard funerals and the passing of life is dramatically different for everyone. During this project I have explored death rituals and their history in different cultures. Using imagery found from cemeteries and rituals that I have researched first hand I have created a body of work that celebrates the passing of life. Mexicans celebrate the ‘Day of the Dead’ festival every year on the 31st October, a joyful event where they dress and make themselves up as skeletons to celebrate their lost family. Native American’s create a doll with hair from the dead, which they carry with them as a reminder of their grief. In Tibet they commemorate their dead by using a ritual called a sky burial where they cut the body into small pieces which is then eaten by circling vultures. In Papua New Guinea they believe part of the grieving process is to show a physical representation of emotional pain. They do this by cutting off one finger for each loved one they have lost. Finally, In the Victorian era woman would have to wear black dresses to show that they are in mourning. My vulture of Death has collected all of these symbolic representations into her nest, to gather the different cultures together and celebrate the passing of life.