Art Night, November 1: Día de los Muertos

Come to The Southern Letterpress on Art Night, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., on Thursday, November 1! We will be printing calaveras to celebrate Día de los Muertos.

A calavera is a short parodical epitaph. Calaveras were originally printed in Mexican newspapers & broadsheets in the 19th century, most famously by Jose Guadalupe Posada, Manuel Manilla and Antonio Vanegas Arroyo. Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a very old Mexican holiday to commemorate loved ones who have died and celebrate the inevitability of death.

To get you warmed up, here is what Ben Franklin (a printing hero!) wanted for his epitaph:

The body of B. Franklin, Printer, (Like the Cover of an Old Book Its Contents torn Out And Stript of its Lettering and Gilding) Lies Here, Food for Worms. But the Work shall not be Lost; For it will (as he Believ’d) Appear once More In a New and More Elegant Edition Revised and Corrected.

Hope to see you then!