Giving life to the past
Longmont’s Day of the Dead festivities to stretch into several months
While the Mexican holiday Day of the Dead is normally only celebrated over the course of three days, this year’s Longmont festivities honoring the tradition will stretch into several months.
With Museum of Longmont launching its Dia de los Muertos exhibit early this month (which runs through Jan. 9) and Firehouse Art Center kicking off the opening of a new exhibit with a parade today, there are plenty of virtual and in-person opportunities to tap into the vibrancy and wonder of a custom that beautifully honors the departed.
“This is my favorite holiday and it makes me proud to know that the Firehouse — in collaboration with the Longmont Museum, the LDDA, el Comite, LMAC and other Longmont organizations — is a part in creating the largest Dia de los Muertos celebration in Colorado,” said Elaine Waterman, director of Firehouse Art Center.
Coronavirus and the new safety guidelines have altered the offerings of the two-decade Longmont tradition, yet the passion surrounding the culturally rich city-wide affair remains as strong as ever.
In years prior, the local celebration and events associated with it would draw more than 8,000 spectators. This year, huge crowds will not be able to gather, but plenty of revelries will commence.
Grupo Azteca Tlahuizcalli dancers will start with an invocation at Roosevelt Park at 6 p.m. today. Around 6:30 p.m., a procession of gigantes will joyfully stroll the streets of Longmont.
“The origin of these giant puppets goes back to the tradition of Los Gigantes in Spain,” Waterman said. “The Spanish invaders brought this tradition to Mexico and the designs evolved into the puppets you see in modern Dia de los Muertos celebrations. In Mexico. and some parts of Latin America, these huge puppets have enormous decorated heads made from paper maché while the body is an A-frame structure draped with fanciful garb. They can get up to 15-feet tall, but I think our largest one is around 9 feet. The dancer/puppeteer climbs under the structure — where their feet become the gigante’s feet — and a slight mid-body slit allows them to see through the clothing.”
Those who wish to join the parade are encouraged to dress up in calaca — skeleton — apparel and don masks. While all the evening’s events are free, folks must register for a ticket. Their final destination will be the Firehouse Art Center, where registered attendees can explore the latest work on display at no charge.
Community members and local artists recently created nearly 35 “Catrinas,” with 13 hanging in the Longmont Public Library and the remainder hanging in the Firehouse gallery. Visitors can bid on the alluring works that feature the iconic Mexican figure and take a bit of the tradition home with them. All proceeds support the Firehouse’s outreach programs, cultural events and exhibits.
Visitors can also view the diverse and stirring work of modern Colorado-based Latinx artists Adrian Raya, Cal Duran, Javier Flores and Ramon Trujillo.
“Death and loss is something everyone goes through, and the process of coping is such a difficult thing,” said Grace Gutierrez, curator of Firehouse Art Center’s Dia de los Muertos 2020 – Our Past and Present. “I think especially now, communities are often so divided, but healing communally makes it so much easier for individuals who experience loss to get through it. That is what is so beautiful about this celebration, that it invites families and community to celebrate and memorialize our lost loved ones while also giving us time to practice humility and empathy towards one another.”
From Flores’s captivating shadow-like boxes displaying yellow-hued vintage portraiture of lost loved ones to the collaborative work of Adrian Raya and Ramon Trujillo that memorializes two 21-year-old men, Juan Louis Garcia and Jeffrey “Beaver” Cordova, who were shot by a police officer in Longmont in 1980, the pieces call attention to citizens of the past.
“Viewers can expect to see a wide range of my artistry — sculptural pieces made of ceramic and paper maché,” said Denver-based folk artist Cal Duran. “I am an altar maker, a chosen one in my linage to honor the past and stories of my culture. I’m looking forward to showing the public how important it is to honor the spirits of the past as we are legacy keepers for our lives and ones before us.”
Within his display at Firehouse, Duran pays homage to José Hilario Cortez — a Longmont man who stood up to the Ku Klux Klan and fought against hate in the 1920s.
“I get to dive into the imagination, to honor my culture through ancient mediums, to hold space for creating my dreams, to build legacies and teach others that art is a powerful tool to heal,” Duran said.
Duran’s detailed work fully submerges the onlooker. Creating a palpable vibe and tone, he transforms gallery spaces into meditational places of worship — filled with candles and fra
grant marigolds — where senses are engaged.
The exhibition as a whole gives attendees an intimate peek into the lineage and lives of local deceased individuals they may have never heard of until now.
“I would have to say the most rewarding thing about being able to curate this exhibition is being able to share local Latinx history with the community,” Gutierrez said. “I grew up in Longmont and I have seen it change so much since I was a child, which I think is great, but with change comes gentrification and displacement of Latinx families and businesses, so to be able to share our stories and histories is a real honor. As far as the festivities go, I love that the celebration bridges generations of traditions from ancient Indigenous Aztec dancing with Grupo Azteca Tlahuizcalli, the gigantes procession and an art exhibit exploring local history with a modern artistic twist.”
Gutierrez, known for her large-scale murals that pay homage to her culture, is excited to showcase the work of her mentors and peers — all of whom she met while in art school.
“All of these artists are doing important work often addressing social issues and embracing cultural pride and community engagement,” Gutierrez said. “I wanted this exhibition to do all of those things so they were all natural choices.”
Gutierrez also sees the exhibit, which will be up through Nov. 8, as something families can experience and bond over together.
“I also love how this holiday connects generational divides and reminds us how important it is to understand and be proud of our past and learn from our history,” Gutierrez said.
Sharing culture
The Longmont Museum is also filled with community-sourced flower-dotted altars, sugar skulls, family heirlooms and photographs.
“The most rewarding aspect of carrying on the tradition of Dia de los Muertos is sharing cultural experiences and finding commonalities between diverse experiences,” said Ann Macca, Longmont Museum’s curator of education. “These things are especially important this year with so much loss in our community. It’s even more important than usual to give people opportunities to remember their loved ones, honor and mourn them, and to celebrate their lives.”
The sprawling exhibit also features the work of Regis University professor and renowned artist Tony Ortega — an award-winning creative whose career spans nearly four decades.
“The last six months have been challenging times, with anxiety, uncertainty and insecurity with COVID19,” Ortega said. “Like many other artists, many of my exhibits had been postponed, canceled or closed to the public. Thanks to the opportunity given to me by the Longmont Museum, I have been creatively revitalized, especially the last few months.”
The exhibit includes Ortega’s paintings, prints, mixed-media works and illustrations from kids’ publications.
“These children’s books, written by Dr. George Rivera and illustrated by me, are part of a series that recounts the adventures of a Chicano boy, Pano, and his two dogs, Cholo and Vato,” Ortega said. “Their adventures include a Day of the Dead celebration, their experience in a migrant family and their adventure learning the history of Cinco de Mayo. Their experiences are described in
Spanish and English with colorful and lively illustrations by me. Their adventures give viewers glimpses of Chicano culture and convey an appreciation through open discussions about tradition, identity and childhood discovery.”
Ortega, with the help of volunteers, has also crafted a five-panel mural in downtown Longmont commemorating the celebration’s 20th anniversary.
“As a Chicano artist, my identity, cultural traditions and geographic background inform in my art,” Ortega said. “I live between the clash of two cultures, one Mexican and American. By merging iconic Mexican and American iconography in my art, I show that my journey is not unique.”
In his series of hybrid images, Ortega fuses American pop culture with notable Mexican culture and the result is both playful and enthralling.
“Often, I combine contemporary issues with art historical references,” Ortega said. “In my print ‘Mexican Gothic,’ I place two wellknown Mexican artists and activists Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo in a Grant Wood painting. With this image I hope to show that Mexican Americans/mestizos that our presence in the United States has a long history, even longer that the existence of the United States as a nation.”
Entrance into the Longmont Museum is $5 for students and seniors and $8 for adults.
“With creating art, I can address the differences in my world, forming a new and more accurate outlook of my personal and cultural identity,” Ortega said.
On Nov. 1, folks can log on to Longmont Museum’s Facebook page, Longmont Publicmedia.org or tune into local Comcast Channel 8/880 for a virtual Day of the Dead Celebration which will include performances by Las Dahlias singing Mexican trio, Grupo Folklorico Mexico Lindo dance, mariachi, poetry by bicultural community leader Laura Soto and more.
In addition, today numerous downtown Longmont businesses will unveil ofrenda displays that will remain up through Nov. 2. Maps for self-guided tours of all business altar locations will be available at downtown businesses, as well as at the Longmont Downtown Development Authority office at 320 Main St.
Every week in October, Longmont’s Day of the Dead website will feature thematic content that people can partake in at home. From creating an intricate altar in one’s very own living room to preparing traditional cuisine, the offerings are sure to keep folks engaged and entertained.
“I hope that people take away a sense of connection to their community from this exhibit,” said Macca. “Everyone experiences loss, and we’re not isolated in our grief. Throughout all of Tony Ortega’s work is a sense of life, joy and celebration, and that’s something we all need right now. As a curator, I’m honored to have inherited this program and tradition. The fact that we’ve made it to 20 years of celebrating Dia de los Muertos at the Museum and it continues to go and grow is an indication of how much it means to the people in the community.”