Día des los Muertos exhibit, events at UW-Stevens Point
10/5/2016
 

The traditional Mexican holiday, Día des los Muertos (Day of the Dead), will be celebrated throughout October at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point with an exhibit and events at the Carlsten Art Gallery.

The exhibit will be on display Monday, Oct. 10, through Sunday, Oct. 30, at the gallery on the second floor of the Noel Fine Arts Center on campus. It will include traditional and contemporary Día des los Muertos ofrendas (altars) with sugar skulls and displays created by members of the Latino Student Alliance, Spanish Club and Carlsten Gallery Student Advisory Committee at UW-Stevens Point. The exhibit and events are open to the public, free of charge.

An opening reception will be held from 6-9 p.m. Monday, Oct. 10, in the Carlsten Art Gallery. Anju Reejhsinghani, an assistant professor of history, will present a talk about the holiday and its traditions.

A screening of the film "La Vida y Los Muertos" will be held from 7-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, in room 221 of the Noel Fine Arts Center. Directed by Carolyn Kallenborn, associate professor in design studies at UW-Madison, the film presents the rich and vibrant celebration of the holiday in Oaxaca, Mexico.

A celebration will be held from 6-9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, at the gallery and Noel Fine Arts Center balcony. The evening will include Mariachi music, face painting, kids crafts and refreshments, including the dessert bread, pan de muerto.

Día des los Muertos is celebrated throughout Mexico and in parts of the United States. It is connected to ancient Meso-American beliefs surrounding death and rebirth. The Aztec ritual was moved to coincide with All Saints Day and All Souls Day, and includes visiting a cemetery where loved ones are buried to clean and decorate graves and celebrate the deceased with food and music.

Guests are invited to add objects to a community ofrenda. Items may include candles, candy, corn, flowers, fruit, bread, incense, instruments, nuts, squash, pumpkins, photos of lost loved ones, personal mementos, skeletons, sugar skulls, soda, religious decorations and toys.

The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Thursdays from 7-9 p.m. and on weekends from 1-4 p.m. For more information, contact gallery curator Leigh Wilcox at 715-346-4797.

Article Tags

COFAC; Vibrant