![]() ![]() 1, also known as Día de los Angelitos (Day of the Little Angels), which celebrates the children who have passed away in the last year. Over the years, the holiday has interwoven with Catholic traditions marking the start of All Saints' Day on Nov. The origins of Día de los Muertos can be traced back to the Aztecs, according to Houston artist Lizbeth Ortiz, a curator with MECA and the Hardy & Nance Art Studio in Houston. It's a time-honored tradition, especially in Latin culture, but also acknowledged across other regions. To many, it may seem like just another part of Halloween celebrations, but it's important to acknowledge that this sacred holiday has nothing to do with All Hallows' Eve. The framed photo of my mother, the mantel (tablecloth) my abuelita sewed, my grandfather's harmonica, a plate of pan dulce - these are the items that adorn my ofrenda (altar) as I honor the memory of my family in celebration of the traditional Mexican holiday known as Día de los Muertos. We make this offering in love and respect for all the poems and stories that go unheard, unpublished, and unrecognized.This story was originally published in October 2020 and updated in October 2021. With this altar we celebrate Barbara Abercrombie, Octavia Butler, Wanda Coleman, Camila María Concepción, Joan Didion, Natalie Smith Parra, Kit Reed, Michele Serros, Tatiana de la Tierra, and Yvonne de la Vega. We thank mother earth for holding all our stories while we live on this plane, and we ask our ancestors and our gods to welcome these writers into the beyond. We want to ensure their contributions are honored in this life and their names remembered into the afterlife. Often overlooked because of gender, race, orientation, health, and class, we lift up these writers' voices just as they lifted up marginalized writers in their lifetime. The woman-identifying and non-binary writers on the altar were chosen from our WWS, Los Angeles, and Southern California communities. Wanda Coleman, Unofficial Poet Laureate of Los Angeles I owe much to these spirits and am grateful to be able to honor them here in the middle of the city that has been the backdrop of our family history. ![]() My suegro Jose Luis Jimenez who left this earth right before my love and I first crossed paths, leaving me my childhood friend turned magical partner. and Tia Dolores Dominguez who shared a love of vintage and gardening and whose potted desert plants are featured on the altar. The photos in boxes are in honor of my maternal abuelo Arturo Dominguez, who passed long before I was born, my Tio Arturo Dominguez Jr. Although he had a rough exterior, once during a stressful time I overheard him telling his friend that I was a chingona and I had never felt so proud. ![]() The aesthetic foundations of the altar are inspired by my abuelito, Federico Caballero Monares who broke his body as a concrete craftsman, pouring concrete for gas stations all over Los Angeles. This altar is dedicated to the ancestors who sacrificed for the beautiful life I have today. To celebrate life – ALL LIFE – every day. To come to terms with our own mortality.ģ. To remember, honor and memorialize those who we’ve lost.Ģ. Sometimes they were here for a long time, sometimes for a short time – but always an impactful, memorable time.Īs you interact with and learn from each ofrenda, remember what the Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead celebration is in three simple tenets:ġ. As you visit with each ofrenda, perhaps you can imagine sharing a cup of coffee or a sip of tea or getting a good book, movie or play recommendation from those who are being remembered.Įach altar is dedicated to people like you or me or someone we know, who lived, loved, and became part of our community. Each installation gives the viewer a glimpse of the person(s) being remembered, who they were in life, what was important to them, what brought them passion, what their impact was on those still living and especially how they were loved. What you’ll see as you walk through Grand Park are exquisite threads that create tapestries that focus on legacies, families, and the beauty of our diverse Latino community.ĭía de los Muertos/Day of the Dead at Grand Park, offers Los Angelenos and city visitors the opportunity to interact with an intimate and important component of the celebration – the ofrendas/altars. Los Angeles is comprised of different communities with rich, impactful histories and cultural contributions. ![]()
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