Thirty Years of the Día de los Muertos Exhibit!

This year the Art Center celebrates the 30th anniversary of our annual Día de los Muertos Exhibit, October 13 – November 3, with artwork by 29 artists, an artwork collaboration with Eugene Arte Latino showcasing Día de los Muertos photographs by five Mexican photographers, a Day of the Dead Gift Shop presented by Suzanne Algara of Buganvilla Imports, and community altars honoring loved ones who have died. The Title Sponsor of the 2023 Día de los Muertos Exhibit is Lane Forest Products.

The Fiesta Reception with music by El Taller de Son Jarocho and dancing by Ballet Folklórico Colibrí takes place on Friday, October 13, from 5 – 8 pm. For the Fiesta Reception, a special mobile gallery, the “Muerto Mobil,” featuring an exhibit of Día de los Muertos artwork, will be stationed in front of the Art Center.

In honor of the cultural holiday of Día de los Muertos, the Art Center is hosting a Free Día de los Muertos Family Day on Saturday, October 28, from 1 – 4 pm. Bring your family and friends and enjoy free art activities, including sugar skull making, creating paper marigolds, storytelling, and more.

The artists displaying work in the 2023 exhibit are from four states and Mexico. A wide variety of mediums are represented, from collage, clay, and acrylic to modeling paste, fabricated steel, and mixed media. The Mexican photographers exhibiting are Juan Carlos Reyes, Alejandro IV Barrágan, Maricela Figueroa Zamilpa, Fernando Soto, and Salva Sandoval. Their photographs highlight the many ways Día de los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico. Seven community ofrendas (altars) will be on exhibit, including an altar dedicated to Susan Dearborn Jackson, one of the original founders of the Art Center’s Día de los Muertos Exhibit.

The Maude Kerns Art Center, located at 1910 E. 15th Avenue at the corner of 15th and Villard, is Eugene’s first non-profit community center for the visual arts. Gallery hours are from 10:00 am to 5:30 pm, Monday – Friday, and noon to 4:00 pm on Saturday when exhibits are on display.