Last year the Hotel Marquis along Paseo de la Reforma was very nicely decorated for Day of the Dead. This year the decorations are even more extensive.
Under a cascade of (artificial) marigolds are giant skeleton figures which represent famous celebrities of Mexico and the U.S.
Cantinflas was a famous comedian and movie star. He is sometimes referred to as the "Charlie Chaplin of Mexico". He is best known in the U.S. (if you are of a certain age) for his co-starring role in the movie "Around the World in Eighty Days.
María Félix was the most famous actress of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. She has been compared to Elizabeth Taylor.
This was a Mexican celebrity that I never heard of before. Adalberto Martínez Cháves was a comedian and actor who went by the nickname of "Resortes".
Representing the United States are Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe and Frank Sinatra.
What makes these figures truly amazing is that the clothing is all done in intricate beadwork.
The beadwork is a traditional art form of the Huichol tribe of western Mexico. The figures were done in the Menchaca Studio. The owner, César Menchaca, makes the figures, and then hires Huichol families to create the designs. They painstakingly use thousands upon thousands of colored glass beads. The studio has transformed the lives of hundreds of indigenous people who previously had a subsistence living. Through Menchaca's efforts Huichol art has been preserved and promoted. Figures from Menchaca Studio have appeared all over the world, from New York City to Germany, from Dubai to Madrid.
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