Spanish Harlem's Cultural Composition

After the first room in the EL Museo Barrio, the gallery opens up into a spacious room annexed by another hallway. The contemporary and brightly colored works found in this area a montage, symbolical and emotional, and do not have a major theme or relationship between them. Alas, modern art is hard to organize. To one side, among the mismatched large and small frames, are decorative Mexican sculptures. Within these objects, there is a very bright, vibrant and expressive, striped giraffe, a sparkling rooster, and a glittering skull, which is a "Mexican ofrenda", a traditional component of the Mexican day of the dead celebration. Center stage is a large masterpiece by Pepon Soon, his 1987 "La Cama". This is an elaborate installation features a bed isolated from everything else in the room. On the brightly painted bed and its gem studded frame are plastic horses, dolls, doves,l and ribbons. Under this "more is more" philosophy that dedicates this work to his childhood caretaker, Soon acknowledges the spiritual riches given to him through this "loving farewell". This work honors her passage to death through the ceremonious day of the dead representation. I am enamored with the cultural attitude the Mexicans have with death and their loved ones that have passed. It is a bright, spiritual connection rather than a macabre or morbid obsession.