Happy Halloween from Lola Who!
What is it about masks? Wandering through the rows of vintage masks below, you can almost smell the cheap plastic and floppy rubber, wince at the garish paint, catch a sudden low, menacing laugh. Which role will you play? Are you the masked, or the spooked?
The hidden identities, the obscured intentions, the gaping eye sockets and exaggerated grins or grimaces… Masks have long been used for their expressive power in various theatrical, ceremonial, and ritual traditions. Nowadays were most familiar with mass-produced plastic masks, but they still represent the mélange of power and play that is their enduring appeal.
Sometimes its hard to tell when masks are scariest. Is it when theyre unoccupied, vacant eyeholes still seeming to trace your every move? Or is it worse when they are occupied, and suddenly come to life with an uncertain identity animating them?
Add a vintage touch to that general uncanny aura, and youve got yourself a spooky situationa good frighta sly Halloween trick. The leering grin of the skull, the twisted features of the clown, and even the blonde-pigtailed doll look like ghostly reincarnations of a cartoon past that isnt so innocent anymore…
Want more vintage masks? Check out Brecht Bug collection
