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Day of the Dead Folk Art by The folk art inspired by Day of the Dead, celebrated in Mexico and around the world, including the American Southwest, powerfully communicates the cultural traditions of this joyous holiday.
Calavera Abecedario by Every year Don Pedro and his family make papier-mâché skeletons, or calaveras, for Mexico's Day of the Dead fiesta. Come dance with them! Includes a glossary of Spanish words and an author's note.
Day of the Dead in the USA by Honoring relatives by tending graves, building altars, and cooking festive meals has been an honored tradition among Latin Americans for centuries. The tribute, "el Dia de los Muertos," has enjoyed renewed popularity since the 1970s when Latino activists and artists in the United States began expanding "Day of the Dead" north of the border with celebrations of performance art, Aztec danza, art exhibits, and other public expressions.
Day of the Dead by Easy-to-read text paired with colorful photos and informative captions introduces readers to a cultural holiday, Day of the Dead. Readers will learn about the origin of the holiday and its Aztec roots.
Daniela's Day of the Dead by Daniela is preparing for the Day of the Dead--the first one since her grandpa died. She makes an ofrenda with Grandpa's favorite things and toy skeletons. Her family has a party to remember Grandpa.
Days of Death, Days of Life by Kristin Norget explores the practice and meanings of death rituals in poor urban neighborhoods on the outskirts of the southern Mexican city of Oaxaca. Drawing on her extensive fieldwork in Oaxaca City, Norget provides vivid descriptions of the Day of the Dead and other popular religious practices. She analyzes how the rites and beliefs associated with death shape and reflect poor Oaxacans' values and social identity.
Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead by Each October, as the Day of the Dead draws near, Mexican markets overflow with decorated breads, fanciful paper cutouts, and whimsical toy skulls and skeletons. To honor deceased relatives, Mexicans decorate graves and erect home altars. Drawing on a rich array of historical and ethnographic evidence, this volume reveals the origin and changing character of this celebrated holiday. It explores the emergence of the Day of the Dead as a symbol of Mexican and Mexican-American national identity. Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead poses a serious challenge to the widespread stereotype of the morbid Mexican, unafraid of death, and obsessed with dying. In fact, the Day of the Dead, as shown here, is a powerful affirmation of life and creativity. Beautifully illustrated, this book is essential for anyone interested in Mexican culture, art, and folklore, as well as contemporary globalization and identity formation.
Of Corpse by Laughter, contemporary theory suggests, is often aggressive in some manner and may be prompted by a sudden perception of incongruity combined with memories of past emotional experience. Given this importance of the past to our recognition of the comic, it follows that some "traditions" dispose us to ludic responses. The studies in Of Corpse: Death and Humor in Folklore and Popular Culture examine specific interactions of text (jokes, poetry, epitaphs, iconography, film drama) and social context (wakes, festivals, disasters) that shape and generate laughter. Uniquely, however, the essays here peruse a remarkable paradox---the convergence of death and humor.Chatham University celebrated el dia de los muertos for the first time this fall on Thursday, October 25th! This exciting event included an educational workshop, a fun craft in the form of paper cempasuchil flower making, and a quick ceremony to honor our dead loved ones. As a university, we selected three people (or groups of people) to honor on the ofrenda. This year we voted to honor Antwon Rose Jr., Victims of Police Violence, and Victims of Mass Shootings, and each member of the Chatham community was encouraged to make a paper flower or a paper butterfly to add to the altar to remember a specific loved one. The altar was set up on the first floor of the JKM Library and remained up for a few weeks for others to view and pay their respects.
We also hosted a second event on el dia de los muertos (Friday, November 2nd) that consisted of a presentation on grief, a conversation about remembering departed loved ones, and another hands-on craft. We made paper Monarch butterflies with our own personalized messages written on them while enjoying music and snacks. Folks could keep their butterflies for themselves or add them to the wall around the ofrenda with others. We enjoyed Mexican hot chocolate and pan de muerto at both events!
These events were hosted as part of Chatham's Latinx Heritage Month celebrations and sponsored by Modern Languages, the JKM Library, the Multicultural Affairs Office, and the Counseling Center. A special thank you to adjunct professor Mildred Lopez Escudero for bring the program to Chatham and the JKM Library!
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Library Semester & Holiday Calendar
