The Albuquerque Museum is hosting one of many community events this Saturday, highlighting Día de los Muertos. World-renowned Mexican-American artist, Mario Ybarra Jr. will lead the way through cultural art workshops.
Ybarra lives in Wilmas, a barrio near Los Angeles where he was born and raised, rich in Chicano culture. He said when he visited New Mexico for the first time in September, the music and food and most of all the people were like a homecoming.
“I really felt like there was already like a place that was waiting for me,” Ybarra said.
Ybarra’s work is part of the Albuquerque Museum’s "Broken Boxes" exhibit, which showcases 23 different artists through March 2.
His piece in the show, "Music My Mom Played While Cleaning the House," at first glance resembles a parade float, but it’s actually an ofrenda to his mother.
An ofrenda is similar to an altar. During Día de los Muertos, people put up photos of their passed loved ones and offer food, drink, flowers, and material objects they loved while living. This is to honor their lives, and show they will not be forgotten.
Ybarra’s mother is still alive, but this ofrenda represents all of the lives she has lived, as a girl scout, an activist, a mother, and a union dock worker. Because his father passed away during COVID, Ybarra wanted to create a piece to honor his mother that she could see in her lifetime.
“The whole notion of the ofrenda isn’t that it's just one-sided, but that its a way of communicating,” Ybarra said.
On Saturday Ybarra will lead a workshop to have folks make their own parade float ofrendas. He prides himself on creating community through art.
“There's all these different tools that we can provide and I guess that’s my biggest asset to the community, being a tool-provider and a gate-opener,” Ybarra said.
In unison with his art piece, he will be spinning records of music his mom played as a kid, sharing his art and culture with those around him.
The festivities will start at 1 p.m. on Saturday at the Albuquerque Museum.
