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2022.58.8

Mask; The Green Devil

2022.58.8

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Collection type
Object
Description
Mask; The Green Devil
Long description
Mask of the 'Green Devil'. The mask is carved from wood and has been painted, mostly green in colour. Pointed ears made from material have been attached to the wooden face with a screw and nail, which have also been painted green. Green eyes have been inset above the eye-holes of the mask, and are decorated with false eyelashes. Long hair, made from horsehair, has been attached to the wooden face with screws. Painted COVID-19 cells also appear on the face, one of which is placed in the figure's open mouth. The mask has been varnished.
Geographical reference
Mexico (Place of Origin)
Latin America and the Caribbean > Central America > Mexico (Place of Origin)
Date
Acquisition information
Purchased: 06/2022
Materials and processes
Material Wood Plant, Material Acrylic Paint Synthetic, Material Horse Hair Animal, Material Synthetic, Material Glue, Material Varnish, Material Animal Horn, Material Metal, Process Carved, Process Painted, Process Glued, Process Nailed, Process Screwed, Process Varnished, Material String
Dimensions
Length x Width x Depth 965 x 230 x 200 mm
Object numbers
Accession number: 2022.58.8
Research and responses

This collection of masks features in ICME news December 2020, To Portray the Virus, p.10-13. The mask is described in the articles as follows: 'Once again, we encounter a creation that comes from the afromestizo people of Guerrero. This mask portrays a devil woman with a face infested with COVID-19 cells, two goat horns that add a demonic attribute, and hair made with horsehair. Mask designed by the artisan Nicolás Peñalosa, Ometepec, Guerrero, Mexico.'

Associated publications
NPR News, Mexican Masks Portray COVID As A Tiger, A Devil, A Blue-Eyed Man, Main author: Cathy Newman, 2021 ICME News, To Portray the Virus, Main author: Carlos Arturo Hernández Dávila; Translator: Blanca María Cárdenas Carrión, 2020

Search terms: Mask

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