December Mariposa Painting

The original painting for the December edition of Mariposa Mail Club. 

This painting is inspired by the Posada parties that I celebrated as a child. It highlights a Noche Buena flower (Poinsettia), candles, a piñata, and snacks given out at a posada.

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The word Posada translates into lodging or a place where one can stay for a night. It also can be used as a verb where you ask someone to give you posada, meaning to give you shelter for a time. A posada in Mexico commemorates the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph’s search for a place to stay where Jesus could be born.

In a traditional posada setting, people enjoy foods like tamales and menudo, warm drinks like champurrado, and sweets like fruits, bread, and candies. Later in the night, the party is divided into two groups, the ones “outside” representing Mary and Joseph, and the ones “inside” representing innkeepers. Certain party goers, usually children, dress up like different figures in the story. Then, with a candle in hand, everyone sings the posada verses together, re-enacting Mary and Joseph’s search. In the chants, they visit several homes and are denied entry until they visit the last home which will take them in. Here is where the party then is held. Christmas music is played, there is traditional food and drinks, and a piñata. The traditional piñata for a posada has 7 colorful spikes. These represent the 7 deadly sins. Participants get blindfolded and take turns until the piñata is broken. This all represents the blind faith they have in God and how it is used to conquer the 7 deadly sins. By doing that, you get joy and rewards, the sweets inside the piñata. These sweets used to be peanuts, small fruits like oranges, cookies, and small candies called colación. I really like this candy, but everyone just associates it with older people lol. It's a spiky ball of solid sugary candy with a cilantro seed in the middle, kind of like a jawbreaker. 

In the painting I made, you see a 7 spike piñata, candles, usually held when singing the posada verses, a noche buena flower (poinsettia), an orange, peanut, and animal cracker. Those were usually in candy bags given at posadas when I was a child. Now they use actual candies, but everyone remembers the traditional peanuts and oranges in a paper bag. I also added a small chex mix square, but that is just from a personal connection. When I was a child, my parents held big posadas for friends and family. They always put chex mix on the tables for snacks and the only ones I liked were the little squares. They just remind me so much of that time and of posadas in general. I hope my painting can share some of that joy to you.

Posadas in Mexico began as a way for the Spaniards to teach native people about Christmas and religion. These celebrations took place on the days leading up to the 24th of December. Today almost any party held around Christmas is called a posada. Whether you do the traditional customs or not, you are still connecting with friends and loved ones and that’s what counts.

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9 in. x 6 in.

Frame not included. 

Only 1 Available.

Painting shipped through USPS.