Many of you know that I used to be in the theatre. I acted, did radio/voice-over work, directed and taught theatre for many moons in a previous life. In fact, I go all “apey” when an artist “becomes” someone or something else and then performs in the new façade. When a person puts on a mask, a miracle occurs. The wearer enters a new world where fantasies, rituals and dreams come to life. To me, whether it’s an actor on a stage or a masked performer at a religious festival, it’s the ultimate creative expression. Right up there with cartooning and karaoke singing! I love it.

So when our new house sitting friends, Sandy and Rob (BritsHousesitting.com), invited us to accompany them to the San Miguel Mask Museum, I was thrilled. Another house sitting couple, dear friends from our Xcalak sit, Manuel and Xochitl (www.wanderingfolks.com), just happened to be passing through San Miguel at that time and joined us for breakfast and then the tour. 

Great food, great friends and, of course, touring a magical place that honors my very favorite artistic expression…well, it doesn’t get much better! We had a blast.

Xocitl & Manuel of Wandering Folks

So here’s a bit about our enlightening experience and what we learned about the wonderful world of Mexican masks and the indigenous people who created and don them.

First of all, to get to the museum, you really need to know exactly where you are going. Here in San Miguel, the cobblestone streets are narrow and a lot of them look the same. Also, we’ve found that the really cool places here are rarely marked with signage, and, such was the case with the Mask Museum. John was right (and I was wrong…I admit it) on the directions. I walked literally up and down the street looking for the place. As a side note, when visiting San Miguel de Allende, north, south, east and west mean nothing. It’s up and down that counts. SMA is built on a lot of hills, and some of them seem like mountains. Cuesta de San Jose (the street where the Museum sits) seemed like a Mt. Everest the day we visited. My Fitbit appreciated the workout. My legs didn’t.

When we entered, we were greeted by Bill Lavasseur and his wife, Heidi. Bill and Heidi had traveled Mexico and Europe with his career as an advertising executive, and then retired from their home in Maine to San Miguel in 1997. Heidi likes to say that Bill has a serious addiction when it comes to Mexican masks. She’s right. Over the past 30 years this man has procured over 600 of them. 

After a brief historical introduction from Bill, we were allowed to enter the exhibition rooms that house a kingdom of colorful pieces of folk art that stare back at you. So cool. Here’s what we learned.

History of Mexican Masks

According to historical experts, masks have been used in Mexico since around 3000 B.C. Before the Spanish invasion, native holy men used masks to summon gods and for sacrifices. When Spaniards took over, the Catholic Church attempted to bring Catholicism to the native population and thus horns were added to the masks of the original gods to depict them as “devils.” In fact, because of the popularity of masks and their accompanying ceremonies, Spanish priests used them to act out stories from the Bible as a means to convert the population. 

The masks were made by artisans who were ordinary people, farmers, carpenters and menial laborers. Though these talented artists didn’t identify their work with signatures, they did pass down their skills, and the rich tradition of the craft is still alive today. Originally mask bases were made of wood, papier-mâché, leather, wax and metal. They were adorned with horse and goat hair, straw, mirrors, yarn, braided straw, ribbons, and animal horns and teeth. 

Today, most masks made in Mexico are for commercial rather than ritual purposes. A modern evolution of the Mexican mask is alive and well with wrestling’s “lucha libre” where contenders cover their faces with tight-fitting, colorful masks. 

Use of the Masks

One of the coolest things about masks is that the performer wearing the mask does not have to be a professional actor or dancer. The mask itself transforms the performer into the character it depicts. Think Jim Carey in the movie Mask.  Events using masks include small neighborhood parties to large city festivals centered around Catholic rituals like Christmas, Carnival, Holy Week, the Feast of the Cross, Day of the Dead, Corpus Christi and the feast days of the major saints.

 

For a participating dancer, his mask is a prized possession. Most masks are kept in pristine condition and are often cleaned or repainted as needed. Many communities house their masks in the local church when they are not being used. And often, when a mask is “retired” or destroyed, it is part of the Holy Week ritual. The masks are immersed in a local river or burned as an act of purification.