Friday, March 29, 2024

PiƱata maker takes a swing at globally feared virus

A piƱata-maker in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, has used his art form to inject a little humor into a global news story that has caused more anxiety than laughter.

For 600 pesos, party organizers in the busy border town can purchase a piƱata in the shape of the coronavirus that causes the disease known as Covid-19. Health officials have said that a widespread outbreak of the coronavirus in Mexico is inevitable within the next few weeks.

The big green ball features the crown-like spikes that give the virus its name, as well as an actual crown, a caricature of a Chinese face and several bats to identify it as the microbe that has become a global pandemic.

ā€œWe have been following the news of this disease that is going around the world,ā€ said Dalton Ɓvalos RamĆ­rez, the artisan who created the piƱata. ā€œWhen we learned that it arrived in Mexico, we wanted to give it our own personal humorous touch, and the response from the people has been good.ā€

Ɓvalos said that he put the piƱata up for sale earlier this week and has so far sold five of them, mostly for childrenā€™s parties. He had promoted the design on social media, and it went ā€” suitably enough ā€” viral within minutes.

ā€œWhat we tried to do is represent this virus. We chose a face with slanted eyes, the bats because we heard that it came from that animal. … We arenā€™t trying to offend anyone. Itā€™s just funny a way of looking at current problems.ā€

The store has also treated other current events with its papier-mache stylings, though the piƱata of President LĆ³pez Obrador holding a model of the presidential plane hasn’t sold so well.

The current feminist movement in Mexico, which has led to a number of marches and protests, did not escape the humor of Ɓvalos. He has designed a piƱata of a topless female protester painted with the phrases ā€œMy body, my choiceā€ and ā€œDown with the patriarchy.ā€

Although he priced them around 1,200 pesos (US $53), Ɓvalos said those two arenā€™t up for sale due to some negative comments they have elicited from customers.

ā€œWe didnā€™t want to sell them because many people have gotten offended. Thatā€™s not our intention. As artists, we just want to express whatā€™s happening in the country,ā€ he said.

Source: El MaƱana (sp)

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