Marigold Month

October is the month of the Marigold.

Here's what I now know about this sunny little flower:
It was originally found in the Americas from Argentina all the way to New Mexico. The Aztecs called it Zempasuchitl. I am using this spelling because I also found about five other variations so I picked the one I liked. The Spanish brought it back to Europe where it spread rapidly. It was often called Mary's Gold in honour of the Virgin, and was associated with the sun and creativity.
In Mexican and Southwestern U.S. culture it is a part of the Dia de los Muertos celebration, often found on their altarpieces, which usually contain each of the four elements. Marigolds represent the earth.
 When Naomi and I were at the Santa Fe farmers market the summer of 2012, we found someone selling garlands of them strung together so I had to have one.

Later I used the garland as inspiration for one of my paintings, "Death and the Maiden".

This year for a local Dia de los Muertos exhibit I am submitting a painting of a marigold simply called "Zempasochitl". It can be associated with death and grief so I added some darkness, some sense of transition, in the smaller flower images and the incomprehensible letters. I also shadowed one side of the large image to convey the passage of time, the journey of the sun across the sky.

I had great fun with all those lush yellows and oranges.
Oh and this is a wonderful little film: