The artwork titled “Because of the end of the world everyone will certainly now become calaveras; farewell to all the living, this is for real” is a creation of the artist Jose Guadalupe Posada, affiliated with the Modernismo art movement. This piece belongs to the genre of caricature.
The artwork vividly depicts a chaotic scene marked by an erupting volcano at its center, spewing out skulls and bones, symbolizing a cataclysmic end of the world scenario. Surrounding the volcano, skeletal figures, characterized as “calaveras,” engage in various activities amidst the tumultuous backdrop. The skeletal figures illustrate a landscape overtaken by death and destruction, echoing the artwork’s title and thematic focus on the inevitability of mortality. Accompanied by a textual banner at the top, the artwork merges visual and literary elements to convey a poignant yet satirical commentary on life and death, embodying the essence of Posada’s distinctive caricature style.