Visiting artists treated anyone who stepped through the doors of in downtown Mystic Sunday, to a mask carving demonstration.
“This is fantastic, it’s unbelievable,” said Bonnie Geisler who had came to Margaritas for her niece’s birthday only to be pleasantly surprised by the demonstration.
The two artists, Manuel Abeiro Horta and Modesto Horta, transformed a block of wood into a traditional skeleton mask that Margaritas will hang on a wall in the restaurant.
The brothers are part of a team of mask makers from Tócuaro, Mexico. The two were between the ages of ten and 12 when they started learning how to carve masks by helping their father. By the time they were between ages of 15 and 17 they were carving the masks themselves out of handmade tools. Many regions in Mexico use the traditional masks during fiestas.
Margaritas restaurants are furnished with materials from Mexico and every year representatives from the 23 restaurants travel to Mexico to pick out the furnishings and meet with the artists.
After meeting the Horta brothers' father years ago the Horta family became part of the Margaritas Education Outreach Program, which every year brings artists to Margaritas restaurants and local schools.
The two artists will travel throughout New England over the next two months as part of the outreach program.
