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Day of the Dead exhibition gives cultural perspective

Katie Olson, Editor-in-Chief

dayofthedead2smallwithcreditIn collaboration with this year’s Day of the Dead Festival, the Greater Denton Arts Council presents Day of the Dead: Una Exhibición, a presentation of traditional and contemporary ofrendas, or altars, that signify the meaning and origins of the holiday.

Various community leaders and groups including the Tri-County Regional Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Denton ISD, Denton Public Library, Ghosts of Denton, Oak Street Draft House and the Day of the Dead committee contributed to the exhibition altars. Greater Denton Arts Council Executive Director Tracy Bays-Boothe explains that the exhibition also contains a community altar where members of the community may leave an object of significance in remembrance of a loved one who’s passed. This tradition, according to Bays-Boothe, transcends all the way back to the Aztecs and is also associated with All Saints Day and All Souls’ Day.

Bays-Boothe shared: “In those cultures, they believed that there’s this certain moment of the year when family members can come back, and they come and visit family. So the altar is meant to be not only a remembrance, but also to welcome the spirits as they come home.”  

Combining historical and cultural signifigance Bays-Boothe is optimistic that the Day of the Dead exhibition will offer a unique experience for anyone who attends.

She added: “I hope that they’ll be able to reflect on people that they love, loved ones that they’ve lost. It’s a very festive, happy time when families are reunited.” 

The exhibition opened on Friday, and will continue to run until November 2 in the Patterson-Appleton Arts Center.

For more information on DotD:UNA Exhibition visit www.dentonarts.com

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