Butch Locsin’s two-car garage is full of skulls. Thirty-nine skulls to be exact.
They’re not real skulls; they’re masterfully sculpted, intricately painted styrofoam masks. When he places one over his head, he transforms into his alter ego: the Skeleton of Color.
Locsin uses the masks during his hypnotic street performances when he dresses up in vibrant three-piece suits and sets off dozens of smoke grenades, swirling clouds of color around himself. He’ll march forward in glittery, silver loafers, lunging to the ground and spinning around. When he emerges from the smoke, he looks triumphant.
The Skeleton of Color lets Locsin express himself in a way the “typical Butch” can’t. “The masks empower me,” he said. “When I put them on and all eyes are on me, it just gives me this confidence, this rush.”
Locsin has performed all around the world, from the streets of L.A. to festivals in New Zealand to parades in Mexico, since inventing the character in 2014. He’s been in commercials, movies and music videos, and garnered roughly 250,000 followers each on Instagram and TikTok.
Shooting his mysterious smoke shows in public is no small feat. Locsin needs to find spaces large enough for the smoke to rise and spread. He also needs to fit all his camera and lighting equipment without blocking passersby and traffic. He likes going late at night to the 2nd Street Tunnel, Slauson Avenue Bridge and Bay Street. He typically puts on the shows to make social media content, but sometimes he’ll post about a shoot on his Instagram story so fans can come watch in person.
Locsin developed an infatuation with skulls as a kid after seeing them graffitied on the streets of L.A. His favorite Marvel character was the Punisher, an antihero whose symbol is a skull and crossbones. So, he began to design skull masks. The colorful suits and smoke grenades followed.
“I started playing around with this character and I was getting really positive feedback,” Locsin said. “And from there it just took off.”
The Skeleton of Color is an homage to Mexican culture and the Day of the Dead, a November holiday honoring the lives of past loved ones. It’s typically observed through family gatherings or the creation of shrines — and wearing skull makeup and masks. Though Locsin is Filipino American, he appreciates the holiday and enjoys celebrating it.
On social media, Locsin’s performance videos are flooded with positive reactions, but whether his art upholds the original meaning of the holiday is still open to debate.
Consuelo Flores, a Day of the Dead legacy artist at Self Help Graphics, an organization committed to advancing Chicanx and Latinx artists, believes personal relationships and identity are important parts of the holiday.
“It’s very important to me that this celebration maintains its authenticity,” she said. “His work may be pretty and it may be dazzling, but I don’t think it has the substance to be an authentic representation of the celebration.”
Flores said there is a certain responsibility that comes with cultural representations in art. “It entails a level of respect and knowing what we’re doing instead of just playing with it,” she said.
However, Gabriela Rodriguez-Gomez, a Chicanx studies expert who teaches a course at UCLA on Day of the Dead visual culture, doesn’t let Locsin’s Filipino roots affect the way she views his art.
“I always say to my students, ‘First and foremost we need to acknowledge and respect the fact that these are traditions that were handed down through generations by Indigenous people,’” she said. “‘But you don’t have to be Mexican or of Mexican descent to understand or appreciate these visual cultures.’ When I view this work, I see someone who…
Read More: Butch Locsin mesmerizes as the ‘Skeleton of Color’ on TikTok