‘Dancing with Life: Mexican Masks’ features 50 historic and contemporary masks and five complete sets of danza regalia from Michoacán, Mexico.

Organ Mountain News report

LAS CRUCES - A new exhibition exploring mask-making and festival culture from Michoacán, Mexico, will open July 17 at the Las Cruces Museum of Art.

“Dancing with Life: Mexican Masks” features 50 historic and contemporary masks and five complete sets of danza regalia from the collection of the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane, Washington.

The exhibition will run through Oct. 17. An opening reception is scheduled for 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 7.

Across Mexico, masks are worn by dancers in performances known as danzas. The masks often depict devils, holy men, public figures and other characters used to explore religious celebrations, satire, humor and community identity.

The exhibition includes elaborately painted diablos, gentle elder figures and other masks showing the artistry and creativity of mask makers and their communities.

Rather than presenting mask-making as a fading tradition, “Dancing with Life” emphasizes how changing forms, materials and social circumstances have long shaped the danzas.

The exhibition was curated by Pavel Shlossberg, associate dean in the School of Leadership Studies at Gonzaga University. Shlossberg lived with and learned from mask artists in Tócuaro, Michoacán, as a young scholar, and his continued collaboration with artists in Michoacán has shaped his work on Mexican Indigenous masking practices.

“Dancing with Life: Mexican Masks” originated at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture before beginning its national tour. The exhibition is organized by International Arts & Artists in Washington, D.C., in collaboration with Shlossberg and the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture.