All the Dia de los Muertos inspired posts on social media are making me nostalgic for the beautiful cemetery in Craiova, the one by the park, where I used to hang out with my uncle as a child, looking at the various monuments. Now I tend to go with one of my aunts or with a friend, and we have plenty of dead people to visit. You could say that every day is Dia de los Muertos in Craiova – or at the very least that death is ever present in daily life there. The cemetery is lit up with candles often, sometimes so many candles that it looks absolutely stunning at night, offerings for the dead are very common, as is planning elaborate funerals, or having conversations with the dearly departed.
Today I remembered one of my favorite watercolors – the cemetery in early evening – and decided to recreate it on a larger scale. It was a cool thing to work on, as it was mainly about light. Especially creating the warm light of the candles is very satisfying.
