El novio

Born in Lima, Peru, Ludeña moved to the NW in 1993. One of the most colorful and fun Mexican wedding customs is that of tossing the groom. In the reception at a Mexican wedding, the groomsmen and male guests all converge on the groom and carry him around the ball and toss him into the air. They may joke that he's married and he's as good as dead, though the tradition is meant to symbolize the death of his bachelorhood and the beginning of his new life as a lucky married man. –Artist statement