Art of the Skull: Colour Beauty of Traditions

A blog series with stories from the artists, designers & illustrators involved in the contemporary pop up gallery in the Aztecs exhibition.

I’m Roberto Duran, owner of Roberto Duran Photography. Originally hailing from Mexico, my fascination with photography began at the early age of 7, although it was as an adult when my embryonic photographic career began.

My philosophy is that beauty is everywhere and in everything around us – in each project I undertake there is always something that excites, something that should be captured and shared. I love to push technical and creative boundaries (while respecting individual limits), challenge conventional stereotypes and capture the energy of the moment.

The idea of my series “Day of the Dead” (from which one artwork was taken to the “Art of the Skull” gallery) came naturally to me as I was raised surrounding by beautiful Mexican traditions, amasing colors, and fascinating people. I wanted to pay tribute to the culture where I was born and raised, and that shaped me as a person. I also wanted to share the beauty of my culture with Australia. When something excites you the first instinct is to share it – for me, this is the essence of photography.

My entire series consist of more than 50 pieces of artworks and more than 20 dancers, performers, and models participated in this project. It was really great to work with talented people who made this project happened. It was incredibly rewarding experience to turn a creative concept of the Day of the Dead into a photographic celebration of beauty, people and life.

I’m currently working on my next project about traditions. One concept that was in my head for a really long time is about Russian Babushkas and I’d like to interpret them in my own way with real families.