by Susie Atkinson
On November 27, 2014, the indigenous community Boruca lost an icon, Don Ismaël González, who was born July 17, 1928. Don Ismaël’s legacy is abundant as he was the only living person to ever have been declared a ‘cultural patron of the country.’ In the early 70s, he revived mask carving, as it was a dying art with just a few community members still carving masks for the festival of ‘Los Diablitos.’
Don (an esteemed title similar to ‘sir’) Ismaël was self-taught and was always proud of his roots. He devoted his life to keeping the cultural heritage of his ancestors alive and developing a means to generate income for the community. He taught many Borucans, some as young as thirteen, to carve in the traditional way, using both cedar and balsa wood. Today in the school at Boruca, the children are taught carving in the fifth grade.
The history and traditions of Borucan masks began hundreds of years ago, pre-dating the Spanish Conquest. ‘Diablito’ masks, or little devil masks were worn with the intent to scare the unwelcome invaders back to Spain. The conquistadors called the indigenous people devils because they noticed that the natives were not circumcised, and therefore, assumed that they worshipped the devil. The demonic images on the masks failed to keep the Spanish out of Costa Rica, yet the Borucan people feel a great sense of pride knowing that they were triumphant in rescuing the old traditions and that the Spaniards were not able to conquer their spirit.
A mask begins as a log of cedar or balsa. After removing any bark, the artist cuts the log a bit longer than the final length of the completed mask. This log is then cut vertically to produce two half-round pieces. The interior is hollowed out with a chisel and mallet. Next, the rounded front of the mask is hand sanded to a smooth surface, and the design is sketched onto the wood. The artists now begin to remove the negative background area, slowly creating a three-dimensional face. Cedar is very hard and difficult to carve; therefore, the masks made from this type of wood are not quite as detailed.
Conversely, balsa wood is very soft, and these are the masks where the artists can really achieve the many nuances of facial expression. The majority of masks are all of one primary piece of wood. There are two distinct styles, and each tells a specific story about Borucan culture and enhances the memory of Don Ismaël González, master mask carver.
iNFo: Boruca art Gallery
