TITLE: Jass Under Mask
TYPE: helmet mask
GENERAL REGION: Europe
COUNTRY: Switzerland
SUBREGION: Lucerne
ETHNICITY: Swiss
DESCRIPTION: Jass Under Character Mask for Musical Band
CATALOG ID: EUCH017
MAKER: Jan Widmer (Lucerne, 1991- )
CEREMONY: Fasnacht (Carnival)
AGE: 2026
MAIN MATERIAL: latex
OTHER MATERIALS: fiberglass; paint
Fasnacht is what the Swiss call Carnival. In many towns in Austria, southern Germany, Switzerland, and northern Italy, local folk don elaborate masks and costumes to parade through the town. Different towns have variations on the parade, such as the Schemenlaufen of Imst, the Schellerlaufen of Nassereith, and the Muller and Matschgerer of Innsbruck, Austria.
In Lucerne (Luzern), Switzerland, masks made of paper maché or, more commonly today, plastic, and usually take a helmet form. Armies of costumed clowns, musicians, and dancers parade around town in uniform mask styles during the Carnival season. Some throw confetti at crowd members and others distribute candy for children.
There is a great deal of innovation and creativity in mask styles. Each group tends to wear similar masks, based on a theme chosen for that year’s Fasnacht. Because these themes change annually, masks are rarely worn more than once.
This mask was inspired by a popular Swiss card game known as Jass. Each of the face cards has a specific character: König (king), Ober, and Under, with symbol cards for Ace and ten (Banner). This character represents the Under, equivalent to a Jack. It was modeled using computer assisted design, printed on a 3D printer, and then used as a mold for casting through a mixture of latex and fiberglass. The unmolded masks are then painted by airbrush. It was made for use by the Loschtmölch Kriens Music Group in 2026.
