De La Vega Art Gallery Announces Memoria Viva, a Month-Long Día de Muertos Festival Rooted in Art, Memory, and Community.
Contemporary art, a Collective Community Ofrenda, workshops, Open Studio Tours, La Mesa de los Recuerdos, live art, folklórico dance, and artist awards come together October 24–November 21.
Rooted in Mexican tradition and shaped by the many cultures, migrations, and family histories that meet in Tucson, Memoria Viva invites the community to remember not only those we have lost, but also what they continue to give us.
“Día de Muertos reminds us that love does not disappear,” says Mariana De La Vega, Founder and Artistic Director of De La Vega Art Gallery. “Through art, we create space to remember the people, stories, and cultural roots that continue to guide us. This festival is an invitation to gather, create, and honor what we carry in our hearts.”
At the center of the festival is a juried art exhibition featuring artists whose work engages with memory, ancestry, migration, identity, grief, devotion, and regeneration. Selected artists will be presented within a contemporary exhibition and living cultural festival featuring a Community Ofrenda, public programs, and Open Studio Tours. Through painting, mixed media, installation, and collaborative work, participating artists explore Día de Muertos as a living and evolving cultural language.
Curated by Mariana De La Vega and Karyn Holyk, Memoria Viva expands remembrance into transformation: memory takes form, absence becomes presence, and cultural identity continues to evolve through artistic interpretation.
