Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) Altar

UCSB Library is pleased to present a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) altar created by UCSB students in celebration of the holiday. The altar is composed of shoebox altars created by students in workshops on October 14 and October 20 in the Library’s Makerspace. The altar will be unveiled during a short presentation and ofrenda (offering) on October 29, 4 PM. Everyone is welcome to attend and to bring a picture or an ofrenda for a loved one. 

Each shoebox altar represents an ofrenda created to honor loved ones who passed away and includes photographs, items or other reflections that represent the individual(s) being honored. Altars often include four elements: water, wind, earth and fire. The colorful papel picado (punched paper) represents the wind. Earth is traditionally represented by food offerings, such as bread. Candles or other light elements represent fire. The paper cempazuchitl’s (marigold) bright color will guide spirits between their resting places and the living world. 

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a traditional holiday held on November 1 and 2. Originally celebrated in Mexico and other parts of Latin America, its roots are traced to both Catholic and prehispanic Indigenous practices of preparing altars and offerings for the spirits of loved ones who have passed away. The tradition did not become a widely-known, public celebration in the United States until the 1970s and 1980s when Chicano/a artists and activists began producing altars, processions, and other events. The Chicano movement is a social and cultural movement that worked towards the political empowerment of, ethnic solidarity, and pride in being of Indigenous descent for Mexican Americans.