The 33rd annual Día de los Muertos Exhibit opens with a Fiesta Reception on Friday, October 16, from 5 – 8 pm, a festive celebration with food and entertainment, including music by the community group El Taller de Son Jarocho and traditional dancing by Ballet Folklórico Colibrí. The 2026 exhibit features work by 31 artists from four states, nine ofrendas honoring the dead, and a Day of the Dead Gift Shop with authentic crafts from Mexico presented by Suzanne Algara of Buganvilla Imports.

The Día de los Muertos Exhibit is on view through Friday, November 6. The Art Center’s community partners are Eugene Arte Latino and Noche Cultural. The Title Sponsor of the 2026 Día de los Muertos Exhibit is Les Schwab Tires.
This year’s exhibit jurors were Gloria Udosenata, local artist and Hybrid Gallery curator; Orquidia Violeta, Portland artist and member of IDEAL PDX; and Melissa Sikes, Eugene artist and longtime Día de los Muertos exhibitor.

The artwork focuses on the Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead holiday, which blends the ancient harvest rituals of the Aztec god of death and the Roman Catholic holidays of All Saints and All Souls Days. The exhibit highlights a wide range of media, from paintings and prints to embroidery and soft sculptures. Among the artists participating this year are Álvaro Tarragó and Orquidia Violeta, two members of the Portland-based organization IDEAL PDX, which builds bridges across cultures and generations through exhibitions, residencies, workshops, and public art projects.

Eugene mixed media artist Erin Prull exhibits a whimsical acrylic painting on wood panel titled Spirit Guides, representing her devotion to the various dogs in her life. Here she stacks images of her beloved dogs, past and present, to celebrate them together. In the tradition of Día de los Muertos, dogs are “spirit guides” that come to lead their humans to their final resting place. Prull says that she paints what matters most to her, “dogs and people, and the incredible weaving together of their hearts and souls.”

Mexican artist Álvaro Tarragó, who resides in Portland, is a self-taught artist whose work blends a wide range of influences, crossing cultural boundaries in a search for new forms of expression. He is known for mixed-media and acrylic works reflecting social critiques, Latin American themes, and folklore. For the Día de los Muertos Exhibit, he shows DESOLACIÓN, a mixed media triptych on canvas. This impressive, large-scale work has been on display at the Oregon Capitol Building.

New Bedford, Massachusetts artist Adrian Tió displays three striking woodcuts over silkscreen for this year’s exhibit. Tió has exhibited his prints, drawings, and paintings nationally as well as regionally for over 50 years. He describes his recent works on paper, which focus on carved relief images integrated with silkscreen symbols, as expressions in visible form of the legacy of his Spanish, Taino, and African ancestors. He says: “My use of expressive figurative imagery offers a pathway into family history.”

The practice of creating ofrendas is an essential part of the holiday. The ofrendas are intended to please the spirits of the dead who are believed to return briefly to the land of the living on November 1 and 2. There are nine ofrendas in the 2026 exhibit, including ofrendas created by a local Girl Scout troop and members of GRASP (Grief Recovery After Substance Passing), as well as a community ofrenda where exhibit visitors can leave memorial messages to friends and loved ones who have passed.

Special Día de los Muertos activities are offered in conjunction with the exhibit. On Sunday, November 1, from 1 – 4 pm, the Art Center offers a Free Family Fun Day. Family and friends are invited to come to the Center and enjoy art activities, storytelling, and games. The Art Center is also scheduling Exhibit Tours led by gallery guides who introduce K-12 students and other small groups to the artwork, ofrendas, and the culture of the holiday. Call the Art Center at 541-345-1571 to schedule.