Oct. 28, 2023 @ 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Mexic-Arte Museum’s 40th Annual Viva La Vida Festival and Parade is Austin’s largest and longest-running Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) event. Co-presented by the Austin Convention Center and the City of Austin, this year’s festival will take place on Saturday, October 28 at 4th Street and Congress Avenue. The festivities began with a Grand Procession at noon. Festival activities ran until 6 p.m. Participants enjoyed the Education Pavilion with hands-on art activities, traditional foods, local artists and retail booths, a low-rider exhibition, and live performances throughout the day.
Celebrated by Mexicans and Mexican Americans alike, as well as others in Latin America, Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead is an important religious and cultural event that synthesizes pre-Columbian traditions and Catholic Church practices. Originating in ancient Mexico, the annual celebration is increasingly observed in the United States as part of contemporary Latinx popular culture. Day of the Dead blends indigenous religious and cultural rituals with customs surrounding the Catholic holy days:
- November 1: All Saints’ Day (prayers said to saints and martyrs)
- November 1: Día de los Angelitos (Day of the Little Angels, dedicated to souls of deceased children)
- November 2: All Souls’ Day (prayers and offerings made to deceased relatives and friends, especially for souls in Purgatory)
During this yearly event, cemeteries are cleaned. Home and public altars or ofrendas (offerings) are built to honor the dead, who they attract with food, drink, candles, incense, marigold flowers, and objects once favored in their lives.
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