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Thursday, October 29, 2020
GO! magazine — A&E in Northeast Oregon
COVER STORY — DAY OF THE DEAD
ART CENTER EAST HOSTS
LA GRANDE — The annual Día de los Muer-
tos celebration has returned to Art Center East.
Like everything this year, however, ACE had to
make a few changes. Most of the celebration will
take place online or at home, with the exception
of the community ofrenda.
The community ofrenda is now open to the
public at the art center, 1006 Penn, La Grande.
All are welcome to place a photo or memento of
a lost loved one on it (plan to pick up your item
Día de los Muertos
Recognized by UNESCO
as an Intangible Cultural
Heritage, Día de los Muertos
is a Mexican national holiday
that, despite its name, cele-
brates the joys of life and of-
fers an annual opportunity to
honor loved ones who have
passed. The tone of the Day
of the Dead is playful and
celebratory, and its traditions
highlight the importance of
family, both living and dead.
The Art Center East Day of the
Dead exhibit and activities are
supported by a grant from the
Oregon Community Foundation’s
Latino Partnership Program.
Día de los Muertos CELEBRATION
Nov. 9-10). Papers will be available for writing
a message, or you may bring your own. See the
ofrenda with all of its candles lit on Friday, Oct.
30, from 4-6 p.m.
“It feels especially relevant this year in the
midst of a global pandemic to give the commu-
nity a place to remember lost loved ones and
refl ect on the transitory nature of life,” noted a
press release from Art Center East.
Rather than classroom art on the gallery
walls this year, you are invited to leave your
own contribution to our community art wall
when you visit. Check back toward the end of
the exhibit to see what others have added to the
interactive art piece.
New this year is a take-home component
to the exhibit. Take-home kits will include art
supplies and information for creating your own
home ofrenda and other Día de los Muertos
art, as well as four La Fiesta tamales and four
“calavera” sugar cookies.
After you complete your home ofrenda, sub-
mit a photo of it by Nov. 3 and it will be included
in ACE’s online virtual exhibit that launches
Nov. 5. (Photos may be submitted to sarah@
artcentereast.org as a .jpg or .png fi le.)
Take-home kits must be reserved in advance
(call ACE at 541-624-2800 or go to https://art-
centereast.org/product/take-home-kit). The kits
are valued at $25 each. They are available for
free (enter $0 on the reservation form) or what-
ever price you can afford. Reserved kits may be
picked up Friday, Oct. 30, at the art center.
Art Center East / Contributed Photo
ACE’s Day of the Dead celebration concludes
ACE’s Day of the Dead celebration features
with a virtual artist talk with Berenice Chavez, a community ofrenda honoring those who
a recent Eastern Oregon University gradu-
are no longer with us.
ate and a talented
emerging Mexican-
American photog-
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WEEKEND OUTLOOK
Artist talk
Día de los
Muertos is a
celebration of
life through
the lens of
loss. Berenice
Chavez’s work
mirrors this
sentiment, ex-
Chavez
ploring family,
love, separation and belonging with
the photographs she takes of her
undocumented family members.
“My family and I are characters
that play a role in a story of undoc-
umented immigrants in American
society,” Chavez says.
“I photograph my mother every
time I visit home. The process of
developing, proofi ng, editing and
printing the photographs are a
way for me to make up for the time
I cannot be with her. The perma-
nence of the image solidifi es the life
and identity my mother has made
for herself in this country. For me,
these photographs take the place
of the legal citizenship that my
mother does not have. They are
proof that she belongs.”
In this online artist talk, Chavez
will present a slideshow of her
work, sharing some of the stories
behind the photographs. A time for
Q&A with Chavez follows.
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541-663-6404
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PeakLifestyleStudio@gmail.com
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