Exhibition - Día de Muertos: Messages of Love for the Forgotten and Disappeared

The Bath House Cultural Center presents the 38th annual Día de Muertos exhibition. This year, the show is titled Día de Muertos: Messages of Love for the Forgotten and Disappeared. The exhibition, curated by Enrique Fernández Cervantes, includes art in a variety of media and altar installations by local, regional, and national artists. The center will host a reception with the artists on Sunday, October 13, from 5 to 7 PM. This event is free and open to the public.

Focus of the Exhibition
One of the most notable elements of remembrance of Día de Muertos is the offering or altar. Many people think of November 1st and 2nd as the only days when the Day of the Dead is observed, and when altars are set up to welcome the souls of the departed. However, many people in Mexico begin using their altars at least a week in advance, dedicating each day to honoring those who died under different circumstances. According to age-old customs, the altars are visited by different souls over seven days. Each soul has a specific day to arrive, beginning on October 27th and ending on November 3rd. Those who adhere to this tradition keep their altars for the entire week to honor the souls of pets, people who died tragically, those who drowned, unbaptized children and unborn babies, children under 12 years old, and older adolescents and adults.

This exhibition focuses on October 30, when we celebrate the souls of those who are at risk of being forgotten because they do not have many surviving relatives to remember them.

The show also commemorates those who have gone missing and are presumed dead. Although there is no designated date for the celebration of the souls of the disappeared, we have included these individuals in the exhibition’s theme because, like the nearly forgotten, they could be excluded from the celebration unless the community comes together to help to keep their memories alive.

The Role of the Community
Community involvement during the festivities of the Day of the Dead is exceptionally important when honoring those at risk of being forgotten or those who went missing. Many feel that it is their duty as human beings to assist in honoring these individuals, who might otherwise go unobserved.

With few, if any, relatives left to celebrate the nearly forgotten, the community ensures that expressions of affection for these souls are still conveyed. In the case of those who have disappeared, it is understandable that some families are not yet ready to participate in a Day of the Dead celebration because they hold onto hope for the return of their loved ones, even when, in many cases, it is sadly possible that they have passed away. In those situations, the community plays an important role of supporting the families of the missing by ensuring that those souls are valued and remembered with love.

The Día de Muertos celebration views death as a natural part of life and celebrates it with joy rather than sorrow. Rather than focusing on the death of individuals, the festivity commemorates their life with delight and affection.

Artists
The show features art and altars by Jillian Appelbaum, Christopher Babb, Monica Barrera, Nancy Bateman, Angie Bolling, Grady A. Bolls, Jennifer Bowden, Amy Branch-Lambert, Lori Brennan, Maria H. Brereton, Melody Caban, Vanessa Carrera, Tatiana Contreras, Carter Cordes, Charles Cox, Hermila Cuevas, Enrique D'Altamirano, Diana Veronica De La Paz, Jenny Hong DeLaughter, Jesus Delgado, Harrison DeMoss, Dan Dudley, Brayden Efseroff, Shannon Fernandez, Jacque Forsher, Jaime Gibson, Maria Belen Gonzalez, Robert Hamilton, Pam-ela Harrelson, Jim Hastings, Juan J. Hernandez, Jesse Hernandez, Sara Hernandez-Harness, Josh Hickman, Naïma Hill, Sherry Houpt, Carolina Imperial, Duane Johnson, Joanna La Grone-Headrick, Braulio Lazon Conde, Salvador Lopez, Linda López, Jorge Martinez, Cyndi McDonnell, Sonia Medina, Michael Minks, Sarah Mixon, BAM - Beverly Ann Moore, Lucrecia “Gigi” Morales, Gloria Munson, Cristela Nash, Crystal Nelson, Julie Owen, Jerri Quiroz, Joshua Salinas, Daniela Segovia, Raul Servin, Hoang C. Sourygnavong, William Toliver, Christine Unruh, Trai Valentine, Jose Vargas, Tamara Villarma, Emily Villarma, Keith Williams, Maggie Wolters, and Wendy Woodring.