Annual Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Events

Thursday, October 30, 2008, starting at 7 p.m.

As in past years, the annual Day of the Dead observance event will include a presentation on the Mexican tradition of annually constructing in the home or at the cemetery a memorial altar (ofrenda) for deceased family members as part of the observance of the eve of the Catholic fest days of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, a discussion on the ofrenda constructed in the museum by a guest visual artist, along with performances of traditional Mexican music and dance, and refreshments.

Eric Chavez Santiago (far right), his parents (center), and siblings live in Teotitlán del Valle, a Zapotec community located about twenty miles outside of Oaxaca. Their woven textiles will be used to decorate this year's ofrenda in the museum.

For four generations members of the Chavez Family have created woven textiles in the traditional patterns of their Zapotec cultural heritage, as well as original, contemporary patterns, from wool they dyed using natural materials, including insects, plants and minerals.

In October 2007 Eric Chavez Santiago and his father, Federico, demonstrated their dying and weaving techniques during a workshop sponsored by the Snite Museum and the Institute for Latino Studies.

Eric has been invited back to campus to create a memorial altar (ofrenda) in the Oaxacan-tradition for the museum's annual Día de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) observance, which will be held the evening of Thursday, October 30, 2008.