The presentation of Martha Ramirez by Pablo Simental was the most significant presentation this week for me since I had the wonderful opportunity to have her as a professor last year at UCLA. I truly enjoyed her class of El Dia de Los Muertos, which involved being creative and artistic to create an altar in memory of a loved one or friend. She inspired her students in learning about the Nahuatl language, history, and culture since many Day of the Dead traditions are related to the Nahuatl culture. We had to create and set up the altars at the Social and Public Art Resource Center (SPARC) center and collectively as a class complete a spiritual calling of the Dead. I enjoyed painting and cutting my own skull and paper mache flowers to decorate my altar. Every year Martha Ramirez's students participate in the SPARC celebration. Her love for the Nahuatl culture did not begin at UCLA.
Professor Ramirez helped build a Nahuatl University in Mexico by selecting the structure of the University and the artwork to go along with it. She is extremely rooted in her culture and believed it is important to teach about the Nahuatl culture to her students.Her artwork also depicts the Nahuatl culture in using the colors of the four directions of north, south, west and east . Her artwork will continue to inspire young college artists and the history of the Nahuatl culture and what she did to help preserve its history will persist as long as she continues to instill her artistic passion onto students.
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